Attempts at a New Life
by Lily Icerem
Summary: The monster before him wrapped her fingers around his neck, strangling him. "Jack," Alex whimpered. Alex was still unable to move, he tensed as Jack tightened the hold she had on his throat. -Full Summary inside- (20/12/12): On Hold, check profile for details...
1. A Small Demonic Smile

**Attempts at a New Life **

Lily Icerem

**Chapter 1: A Small Demonic Smile**

**Published: 27/04/12**

**Edited: 13/10/12**

**Edit Notes: **

**(?/?/12): Sorry people I just had to edit thing that I noticed when I was re-reading it *Cringe* So very sorry if there are any changes! No major ones, just minor spelling or grammar mistakes! Also if anyone finds more mistakes, please point them out! I can't read my own writing without speed-reading!**

**(13/10/12): This chapter has now been beta-ed by HollyBlue2, so I don't think it should have any more mistakes in there... but you never know. It doesn't really matter... So a BIG thanks to HollyBlue2! **

**AN: **This is my first fanfiction, so take it easy, okay? I couldn't find my copy of _Scorpia Rising, _so I eventually gave up on the 'time' thing, I could seem to remember what month it was when the book ended so I just made up my own timeline. Sorry if I mess things up a bit, if you find some major flaw, please tell me!

**Genre: **Hurt/Comfort/Adventure/Friendship

**Summary: **Set after Scorpia Rising; Alex in trying his hardest at leaving his past behind him, with the help of Sabina Pleasure and her family; Alex slowly settles down into a quiet life, but this Alex Rider; when has his life ever been 'normal'? No parings! Sorry but if you haven't realised yet; it's incest!

**Warning!**Unfortunately for you action junkies out there, this chapter doesn't really have much action in it, in other words; this chapter is for plot building only! Although nothing happens, it's sort of essential, so please bear with me. This chapter is really just talks about what has happened since arriving in America; hence the Chapter name. Also there is a slightly morbid scene… Sorry, but I'm also a ShanFan (Fan of Darren Shan). It's really not that bad, I don't really have that talent, but if you don't like it; don't say I didn't warn you.

Also very sorry about all the empty lines, I'm very used to writing in book style and unfortunately tabs don't work on , so the story might look longer than it really is, but really it's just 5,223 words.

**Disclaimer: Yeah, sure I'm Anthony Horowitz, I am 14 year old girl, I still go to high school, I live in Australia and my name I Lily Icerem… wait. What? Clearly, I don't own Alex Rider. **

**Enjoy!**

His heart was pounding in his chest, his breaths short and rugged. His legs were burning and his thighs were itching from the movement. The summer air whipped his face as violent vibrations were sent up his body, every time his feet hit the rough ground. Alex Rider was again, on the run. This was nothing special, the question was; from what? Scorpia? No, they haven't disturbed him ever since the incident with NCIS**(1)**. Was it the Axe Triads? That wasn't the answer either; they probably have NYPD hot on their heels at the moment **(2)**. The answer was not only unclear to the people who Alex ran past in the park, where he was now, Alex himself didn't know there was a question to answer. With his iPod blaring music into his ears, Alex was on his morning run. Pushing himself to his physical limit, Alex cleared his mind. Every morning at five thirty the teenager would wake up and run to the massive park that was near the Pleasure's house. It was there and only there, where he could be himself.

It wasn't that Alex did not trust the Pleasures, but after arriving in America, he soon realised that it was easier to act normal, as if everything that had happened to him in the past year had never happened. He could still remember the moment prior to the plane ride; he really thought that this could work out. He really believed that going to America to live the Pleasures could make him forget about his past. He was wrong. Sure, things worked out for the first couple of days, but this was short lived, as nightmares plagued his sleep.

_**Flashback**_

_Alex woke to the sound of someone's voice, at first he thought he was being attacked by an unknown enemy and panicked, but as the face of his 'attacker' became clear, he relaxed. Edward Pleasure; his newly adopted father, was shaking him awake, "Alex, wake up. Hey relax. We're landing in LA." Alex shut his eyes again; he had been asleep for most of the plane ride, waking up only once or twice, so he woke up tired and confused. He remained in the same position for a couple of seconds before he opened his eyes again. Edward was looking at him concern, "Are you okay Alex? You were sleeping like a log."_

"_Yeah, I'm fine. I think was just tired," he replied. Edward nodded his head in understanding, thinking that the boy must be worn out, because what has happened to him. That was a part of the truth, but the main reason was because Alex had become claustrophobic. He slept most of the way to avoid the feeling of suffocation. Alex himself did not realise his fear until the plane took off. Sure, it was so minor that he could hide it, but none of this meant that he was comfortable in confined spaces. In truth, Alex was feeling rather pressured at that moment. _

_Around them flight attendants were checking that all the passengers had their seatbelts on, beside him Edward was putting on his seat belt, Alex had fallen asleep almost as soon as the plane took off, so he still had his on, but tucked his backpack under the seat. A young female flight attendant walked towards Alex, he remembered her; she was the one who looked after them during the flight. After they took off she came over to Alex, noticing that he was in a sort of discomfort, she asked Alex how his was feeling. As a wave of tiredness washed over him, he whispered into her ear why he was looking so pale. She smiled and explained how one of her friends had the same problem and managed it by sleeping. She also added the fact that her friend use to snore and drool while they slept. The little joke at the end made Alex smile and he took an instant liking to the woman, but there was also an element to her the Alex felt he knew, something a little too familiar. Before he could think of anything else, he stopped himself, he was just being paranoid. She was pretty, her shiny blonde hair up in a small bun at the back of her head, with brilliant blue eyes. Her tight uniform wrapped around her curved body perfectly. Smiling, she stopped besides Alex and Edward, "Hello, are you feeling better?" _

_Alex nodded and flashed a stunning smile at the flight attendant, "Yes, thank you very much for the advice." She smiled again and nodded; they looked each other for a moment and reached a silent understanding. She moved away as she took the blanket off Alex's seat, secretly slipping him her phone number is the process. Edward looked at Alex questioningly as Alex shrugged and smirked smugly. "She gave me her phone number," flashing the small piece of paper that held the pretty flight attendant's number. "Huh, Scarlett. That suits her."_

"_Oh no, Sabina's going to have her heart broken," voice full with fake concern. _

"_Come on Edward, she's what twenty? Remember I'm fifteen, ain't gonna go anywhere. Anyway, Sab and I are just friends now." It was true, they hadn't seen each other in ages, but they still kept in contact. They both agreed that it would be better for both of them to stay friends. Also, now that Edward and Liz were his adopted parents, it would make Sabina his sister. _'That would be so wrong'_, he thought to himself. "Anyway, this wouldn't be the first time," Alex mumbled._

"_What did you say?" he said warningly._

"_Nothing," Alex replied cheekily, Edward rolled his eyes. _

_A deep voice, with a British accent came on the telecom, "Hello this is your Captain speaking, my name is Alfred Brookes. Will we be landing in LA in a couple of minutes, while we may have had some turbulence during the flight, the weather has cleared up nicely and just like everyone else on this plane; I pray for a smooth landing," everyone chucked at the last comment. "The weather is fine outside with temperature of thirty four degrees Celsius __**(3). **__I hope you had a good flight; the current time is eleven thirty AM__**(4). **__Thank you for flying with _British Airways_." Soon after the Captain's address ended, the plane landed smoothly with a light bump, Alex smirked as he recalled what the Captain had said. _

_Making their way out of the plane, Edward came to a sudden stop, leaving Alex stunned behind him, as the boy nearly crashed into to man. "Edward, what are you doing?" getting no response from Edward, Alex tried a more forceful approach, "Edward!" clapping in the man's ear and shouting his name at the same time. _

"_What?" Edward asked as he broke out of his trance. _

_Alex looked at him oddly, "What were you staring at? You didn't answer to your name and you looked like you were a thousand miles away."_

"_So you opted to make me deaf?"_

"_Sorry?" Alex said guiltily, "But you still haven't answered my question yet. What made you zone out?"_

"_Never mind Alex, I just thought I saw," he had that look again. "Look it's nothing. I doubt that it's actually them anyway. Let's just get off the plane, okay? I really don't want to be in here anymore, eleven hours in quite enough."_

_They got through customs smoothly and soon they made their way out of the airport. Alex looked at Edward curiously; he was half expecting Mrs Pleasure to pick them up. _

"_Liz is out doing some shopping," said Edward quickly, hailing a cab he gestured Alex to get in. "Sabina is at school, it will be a few hours until she comes home. You'll have a moment to settle down, into your new room." Alex gave a small nod, he was suddenly a little nervous; after all, the last time he was in America, things didn't really work out for him. He was about to say something, but a sudden wave of realisation dawned on him; he was heading to his new home, a new beginning. From the moment he steps out of the American cab, he'll have to leave his past behind him. Not that it was a bad thing, but the problem was; could he do it? Could Alex Rider, spy extraordinaire really forget what had happened to him and move on? Trouble seemed to follow him like a loyal puppy, but he would try his best; other than that, what else could he do?_

_Wiping the negative thoughts from his mind, he focused on his surroundings. Edward was still reading his book and the cab driver was, well… driving. As he looked out the window he saw an attractive looking park, it seemed like there was a school excursion; why a school would want to go to a park for an excursion, he would never know. Edward finally looked up from his book and started to get ready to get out. "We're nearly there," he said. _

_Alex nodded; they slowed before coming to a halt in front of an expensive looking house. He couldn't help thinking that Edward must be doing well. He took his suitcase in, as he followed Edward into the house. The interior was cosy and was very well furnished. Extraordinary paintings hung on the walls, as well as pictures of the Pleasures. "You like the house?" Edward walked over and placed an arm around Alex's shoulders, noticing the way the boy was staring at his home, what he didn't notice was the subtle flinch that Alex had hid as he came in contact. "This will be your home from now on, so you better get used to it. Remember you have about," he glanced at his watch, "an hour and a half until Liz picks up Sabina from school. So go and get used to your room, unpack and get ready for two very nosy women."_

_Alex moaned a sarcastic, "Yes, sir," and moved upstairs to find his room. Remembering that he didn't know where his room was, he headed back down to ask Edward. _

"_The third one to the right," Edward smiled. "You must forgive me Alex; sometimes I forget the most important things."_

_Shaking his head, Alex opened the third door to the right. He dumped his suitcase on his queen sized bed, closed the door and looked around. His room was big, but plainly decorated. He guessed that they expected him to want to keep his room personal. It was painted a natural white, just like the rest of the house. His bed was directly across from the door, from that position; there was a timber work desk against the wall to his left. There were two windows on both sides of his bed. Taking a closer look at his room, he could see that there were two doors on the right. Alex went over to have a look, behind was a walk in wardrobe and the other made him smile; his own ensuite. _

_After his long flight, the thought of a hot shower was more than just pleasant. Thinking of how much time he had until Sabina and Liz comes back, he stripped and stepped into the water. The hot water was heavenly as it relaxed his stiff muscles and he cleaned himself of the unsanitary feeling he got from being stuck inside a plane for half a day. Walking out of the shower he grabbed the fluffy white towel that was already there for him and rubbed himself dry. Wrapping the towel around his waist, he walked out of the ensuite and opened his over-sized suitcase (which carried a lot of his clothes and small belongings, but most of his stuff was back in England, in storage) and found his clothes. After deciding what to wear, he put on a tight black t-shirt and a pair of shorts. Putting his sneakers back on, he stared to unpack. _

_He was almost done when he heard the front door open and someone running up the stairs, the next thing he knew, he was being attacked by a flying figure; Sabina Pleasure had wrapped her arms around him neck and was now in a tight embrace with her best friend. Alex was still tense from the shock, but after the realisation of who was in his arms, he relaxed. They held that position until Alex thought it was a good idea to let go, "Um, Sabina?"_

"_Hi?" she said timidly, still holding on the Alex. _

"_Isn't time to let go now?"_

"_No, a few more moments," she replied, her voice was more demanding than pleading. After the moment that Sabina requested had past, she pulled away to eye Alex over. He had changed since she last saw him, he had grown taller, his skin was more tanned, his usual stiff posture had somehow gotten more… stiff, if that was even possible, he held himself with a subconscious pride, that had been drilled into him by his uncle at an early age, but the thing that had changed the most was his eyes (5). They were the same in a way; brown, serious, but there was definitely something about them. Something that Sabina couldn't put her finger on, it seemed like Alex was hiding something, that the person she saw now was only a mask, but either way, she was glad to see him. He had lost most of his boyish looks and his featured were more defined. _'Oh god', _she thought, _'the girls are going to go nuts over him. He'll become a heartthrob. Those bitches will do anything to get him. _'She felt a sudden sense of protectiveness, most of the girls at Sabina's school weren't exactly… innocent'. _

_Alex was worried; Sabina had zoned out and was looking at him with glassy eyes, lost in thought. He looked at the girl that he liked with measuring eyes, she had grown her silky brown her down to her waist and wore it out with pride. She was certainly more gown up than he remembered, she was wearing more makeup than she used to: mascara, lip gloss, eyeliner and foundation, all done in moderation, but put together, there was quite a lot. It wasn't that Alex thought makeup was a bad thing; he just thought that Sabina was pretty even without it. She was no longer had the figure of girl, leaving her twig-like figure behind, she was now taking on the figure of a young woman, curves had appeared on her firm, toned body. _Must be from the sport, _he thought to himself. Her freckles were hidden by the thin layer of foundation on her skin and her bright blue eyes were unfortunately, still giving him a serious, but unfocused look. The boy waved a hand in front of Sabina's face. "Sab, what are you thinking about? Hello, are you there?"_

_Sabina shook herself of the evil thoughts she was thinking about, she really shouldn't be thing of killing those stupid sluts at school… well not at the moment anyway. "Sorry, I just zoned out."_

"_You don't say," said Alex sarcastically. _

_Sabina rolled her eyes, "So, how have you been?" _

"_Fine," he said dryly. Of course he wasn't fine, but then wasn't the time. _

"_Yes, I thought you might say that, but 'fine' in your language means that you totally _not _fine," she sighed. "You know you can talk to me right?" Alex was just about to reply, but she cut in, "I know what you're going to say, but when you're ready. Okay? I'll always be here when you need me." Alex could only nod, he was surprisingly touched by Sabina's words and- "Besides, how else could you tell? Other people will just think you're crazy," she smirked. He picked up a pillow and threw it at her as she turned and walked out the door, making him miss. "Are you coming or are you just gonna stand there?" _

_He groaned and followed Sabina out of his room. They found Liz and Edward in the kitchen bickering about supper. Catching Liz's eye, he was captured in a tight embrace by his new mother. "Hi Alex, how was the flight?" _

"_Long," he replied. "But it wasn't unpleasant."_

"_Yes, that's what I would say," Alex looked at Liz questioningly. "Ed over there was just telling me about the pretty flight attendant," she said teasingly, Alex blushed. "Already attracting older women? What will you do when you get older?" By now Alex was looking like a tomato. _

"_Liz, leave the boy alone," Edward defended. "So... when are you going to ask her out?" _

_Alex could have bashed his head against the cupboard, but he couldn't just let people tease him like that. Picking himself up he said, "Edward, no need to tease. You're just jealous." Edward's mouth dropped open. "She didn't even glace at you once, beaten by a teenager. How's the ego?" _

_The room was silent, but then Liz and Sabina started to giggle, before bursting into laughter. "You got told Dad!" giggled Sabina. _

"_Shut your mouth Ed," Liz was gasping for air. "You might catch flies." _

_Edward composed himself after being humiliated, "Well, moving right along. What do you want for dinner? Liz and I were just arguing about it; I wanted to go out and Liz-"_

"_Wanted to stay home," Liz cut in. "But really it's your choice."_

"_I think I want to stay here," he replied. Liz looked very happy, while Edward looked disappointed. _

"_Well home it is then, I'll start making dinner," Liz started to busy herself within the large modern kitchen. _

"_What are we having?" ask Alex, looking curiously over at the woman. "Do want some help?" _

_Liz looked surprized, "You cook?" Alex nodded; Ian had taught him at a young age. "No Alex, it's okay. You must be tired, go and join Ed and Sab in the living room. We'll have an early dinner tonight so you can head to bed early."_

_Alex blushed at her thoughtfulness, "Thanks." _

"_No problem." _

_Later that afternoon the Pleasures and Alex sat down for an early, but pleasant meal. That night was especially entertaining because Edward decided to start a philosophical debate about the concept of time travel. What was meant to be a short meal, turned into a loud and interesting argument, which did not really go anywhere. By the end of the meal, Alex was ushered up to his bedroom by Sabina, saying that he should get some rest. That night, Alex slept with a smile on his face._

-Line Break-

"_Alex!" Alex jolted up in bed, eyes searching for source of the voice. Panic rose in his mind as he searched his unfamiliar surroundings. He relaxed as he realised that he was in his new room, in America. Focusing on the origin of the voice, he heard it again, "Alex!" the voice was familiar, feminine. He thought as hard as he could, his mind was hovering over the answer, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Thinking that he knew the answer at last, he stopped himself from saying the name, _'It's impossible!' _he thought to himself. "Alex!" there it was again, forcing his mind to clear, he got up from his bed and adopted a defensive stance. It wasn't possible, the owner of the voice that he heard couldn't possibly the person he thought it was. But how could he possibly think that? The voice that was haunting him had been part of his life for such a long time, how could he possibly not recognise it? _'Jack,' _he thought. He still didn't really believe that it could be possible, Jack was dead. Julius had blown her to bits and it was all his fault. He saw it with his own eyes, but for some reason, he wanted it to be true. He wanted his beloved housekeeper to be alive, to be here in his room, because it would mean that her 'death' was never his fault, it would mean that he no longer had to be burdened with fact that _he _had caused her death, her pain. Pulling himself together he walked towards to where 'Jack' was. _

"_Jack is that you?" 'Jack' was standing in the corner where the desk was, face and body hidden in the shadows. _

_The figure turned her head, "Alex." For the first time since that encounter, Alex realised how tired her voice sounded, drained of her usual enthusiasm._

"_Jack how are you here?" he said excitedly. "I thought you were dead, I saw him press the button. I haven't seen for… for," his voice trailed off, he could find any words as to how he was feeling at that moment. Instead of trying to express his feeling by hugging her, stepping forward he leaned towards Jack. _

"_Don't come any closer," she hissed. _

"_What do you mean?" Alex was truly disturbed by the amount of venom in her voice. "Jack, what's wrong? I thought you were dead, I'm so happy to see you, I-" _

"_Alex, I _am_ dead"_

"_What do you mean?" _

"_I mean that I'm dead, you killed me," she said angrily. "You killed me Alex."_

"_What? I, it wasn't me. Jack, it was Julius, he was the one who-"_

"_I know what happened," Jack snapped. "It doesn't matter who pushed the trigger, in the end the only person to blame is you!"_

_Alex was shocked, he had always blamed himself for what had happened, but he had never imagined that Jack would ever say such things to him. He moved toward her, "Jack I-"_

"_Don't! Do not touch me!" she shrieked. "Why didn't you say no? How many times have I told you? You just can't help yourself, can you? You always need to be the hero, to act like you have control. Why did you just have to get me involved? And just before you say it was my choice to follow you to Cairo, just consider how you brought me into this mess in the first place! How many times have I warned you? How many times have I tried to persuade you to let go?" Her voice softened, "I loved you Alex, I tried to keep you safe. I tried to get you away from those people, but you pushed me away. The more I tried, the more you fought. You got deeper and deeper into that mess and look where you have got me!" She stepped out of the shadows. _

_Alex gasped, the person who he loved as a sister was no more, he stared at what she had become. Her clothes were in rags, shirt torn in hundreds of different pieces, but somehow it was still intact. Her jeans, that were once a deep blue, were now a dirty brown. Her clothes were ghastly, but her body was horrifying, there was no place that seemed completely intact, every area of her inch had been stitched together. Each piece of skin was only the size of a small coin. She wore no shoes, even if she _had _shoes, she would have only needed one. There was nothing left of her foot, in fact she was missing more than that, it seemed that whatever had taken her foot, had taken some of her leg as well. On her left leg, Alex could clearly see the bone that should have connected her leg to her foot, the bone was sticking out and the flesh around it was burned and charred. Blood seeped from __her body, not only from her leg, but from her skin, nose, ears and mouth. She stood supported by her right leg, keeping a steady hand on the windowsill, leaving a bloody hand-print on the white paint. Her skin was a tint of an unhealthy green, it could have been the moonlight, but Alex knew it wasn't._

"_Alex, look at what you have done to me!" she hissed violently. Her eyes started to grow red, "Why, Alex? Why did you have to do this to me? I loved you! I treated you well, didn't I? What did I do to deserve this?" _

_Alex was speechless as she burst into tears; red tears, her tears were longer tears of purity, but tears of hate, tears of pain. The bloody tears ran streaks down her face, looking like a form of grotesque makeup mixing with the blood on her face and her body, the seemingly continuous flow, soon grew into a crimson puddle around her foot. _

"_Jack, I'm so sorry." He barely whispered. What could he say? What she said was true, there was nothing that he could pay her with… was there? "Is there anything I can do?"_

_A small demonic smile appeared on her face, "Well, you could pay." Alex started to shake uncontrollably at her voice, it was cruel, but other than that; sadistic. "You could pay with your life Rider! It's not hard, you just have to stand there and let me kill you. Simple as that."_

_His mind was screaming for him to run, his experience was telling him to protect himself, but he was rooted to his spot, not from fear, but from something else. As Jack graced impossibly towards him, his instincts told him he was going to die. _

_The monster before him wrapped her fingers around his throat, strangling him. "Jack," Alex whimpered. Alex was still unable to move, he tensed as Jack tightened the hold she had on his throat. Not only did her fingers rob his lungs of air, they burn his neck, unimaginable pain racked thought his body as he realised that this was the end. Alex Rider was going to die in the hands of someone that he loved, someone that had once loved him, but was destroyed by his own irresponsible actions. He was going die there, unable to move and in terrible pain. _

_Jack didn't press hard enough for him to die quickly, no, she wanted to kill Alex slowly. She wanted to torture him as much as she can, prolonging the process. Jack was laughing at him, calling his name repeatedly, "Alex!" At first it was the same sneering tone, again and again, he ignored it as he said sorry to her in his mind. Suddenly her voice became worried, which caused Alex to think that he was going crazy, her voice was full of concern, but her face was still staring at him demonically. _

_He soon realised that the person who was calling his name was not Jack, it was very familiar, but it definitely wasn't Jack. "Alex!"_

_Alex jolted up in bed desperately searching for the source of the voice. He looked around the room and found Elizabeth Pleasure staring at him, eyes full of concern. "Alex, are you okay?" _

_Alex slowly nodded, "I had a nightmare." He pulled his knees up to his chest, "It was so real." _

_Liz sat there quietly rubbing the boys back, Alex shied away from her touch at first, but relaxed as he realised that Liz would never hurt him. "You know you can cry if you want. There's nothing keeping you from doing it. Let your feelings out Alex, you'll feel better afterwards and you know can trust me. We're family now, you're my son and-"_

_She didn't need to say anymore, because soon Alex was crying. Liz pulled the boy into a hug while he cried his soul out, telling her what his dream was about. Liz sat there and told him that Jack's death wasn't his fault. Nothing was, he should never have been dragged into something like that in the first place. _

"_Liz, why did you come into my room?" Alex asked quietly._

"_Sabina and Ed are asleep, I was going to my room when I heard you screaming Jacks name and apologising again and again." _

_Alex could only nod, he really thought that Jack was going to kill him._

"_Alex?" Liz was looking at him thoughtfully. "Have you ever seen a shrink before?"_

_**End of Flashback**_

Alex sighed, at was almost at his favourite spot; it was a seat on top of a hill, overseeing most of the park. Every morning he would stop there and sit, collecting his mind. Running up the hill after such a vigorous run was exhausting, but the view was worth it. Sitting on the park bench, he recalled the conversation he had with Liz that night. He refused to see a therapist and Liz accepted his choice, but as the week grew past, his nightmares got worse and his mood affected the Pleasures. Every day they would become more drained, more desperate. Alex, not wanting to become a burden, finally accepted Liz's request for him to see a shrink.

His sessions were not successful, they only thing that Alex ever achieved, was pissing the therapist off and nearly killing the bastard. He laughed as he remembered the incident, it wasn't intentional of course, but the guy wanted results so the shrink tried hypnotising Alex into sleep, drawing out his subconscious. Unfortunately for the therapist, Alex's subconscious turning out to be somewhat… dangerous. The poor guy got a very bad fright when he tried to touch Alex in his subconscious state. Alex knocked him out and things didn't really go too well for the therapist.

It was soon after that day when Alex decided to pretend he was better, he learned to control his mood swings and to silence his dreams. Sure, he still got them, but at least he never woke up anyone in the middle in the night anymore. Of course he had help from his Anonymous Shrink.

His phone vibrated, Smithers had given him the phone when he left, it was an incredible piece of technology. It was fingerprint sensitive, which meant that only he could use it. It had a distress function that was activated when he called a certain number, the location was of course given to MI6, but he could also connect it to phones of his choice so that that person would get his location as well, other than that, it was untraceable. Smithers also said that it could be used to contact other agents, but he could not see their numbers, he could just contact them. It also has the same function as the Nintendo DS he was given on his first mission, along with other apps that did other things.

The thing that he least expected to help him, actually came to be very useful. As he took out his iPhone, he smiled.

Anonymous Shrink: _So what r u doing?_

The Reluctant Patient: _What do u think? Running of course!_

Anonymous Shrink: _That has really become a habit, haven't I told u that routine is dangerous for spies?_

The Reluctant Patient: _I'm not a spy anymore_

Anonymous Shrink: _Yes I know, but it's still not a good thing_

The Reluctant Patient: _Whatever, so r u asking for another mission? Which 1 r we up to? Oh yes, I was just about to start about the 1 in Aus. And so were u! What a coincidence!_

Anonymous Shrink: _Actually I was thinking that we should call instead of txt_

The Reluctant Patient: _I thought we were always going to anonymous!_

"I already know who you are, Alex!" shouted a familiar voice.

"Ben?"

_-Line Break- _

**(1): ***Hint, hint* Future crossover, *Laughs evilly*

**(2): **Another future crossover, well Castle _does _work with NYPD, right? Major mind blank.

**(3): **I know, I know. That's not right, but the whole crew is British so… whatever. Cut me some slack, I'm Australian, we use Celsius

**(4): **Okay, I have no idea what time Alex and Edward left England, so if they left at around eight am (at Heathrow), then would get to LA at about eleven am or twelve pm. I'm not sure because my phone says that the difference is seven hours and the internet says eight hours and the flight time is about eleven hours. I'm just going with the internet.

**(5): **I know what you're all saying, "Seriously, another eye reference?" Yes I know it's overly used, but admit it, it works and nothing works better! Anyway, this is FANfiction, if original is what you want, go read a book. Sorry I blab, helps to get rid of my constant mind-blanks.

**AN: **So, how do you think I went? It's now one in the morning, I should really be sleeping. I'm fourteen people! Also I apologise deeply for any mistakes, no one edited this for me and well… I can't edit my own writing.

**Please review! Newbies need the support! **

Should I go on? Is this any good? Please answer, I don't mean to praise myself, but I've always been quietly modest, I hate judging myself. Please tell me what you think!

Please, please, please review! Also, please don't flame!

I really hope people liked this!

~Lily Icerem~


	2. Title of Chapter 2 was too long!

**Attempts at a New Life**

Lily Icerem

**Chapter 2: The Anonymous Shrink and his Reluctant Patient**

**Published: 29/04/12**

**Edited: 26/05/12**

**Edit Note: Again, very sorry people... I just couldn't ignore all the mistake! I probably left out a lot! I'm not sure... please point them out to me! Just saying mistakes could mean anything and sadly, it really could! Hehe.**

**AN: **Hi people! A BIG thanks to everybody who reviewed and yes, this is really my first piece of writing, unless you count the random semi-original murder mystery I started writing in year eight. Except the only reason I started writing that because I felt like it, not because I had any intentions of finishing it. The story only ten chapters and about ten thousand words, it's been edited about a hundred times. So, really I haven't really written much.

Also, I realised that the last chapter nightmare was a little strange… Um… don't worry, I'm not a sadistic author who likes to torture the characters, I had this Darren Shan moment that's all, I'm just slightly insane, nothing to worry about!

I must apologise first for this chapter and possibly the next few chapters, because they will mostly consist of flashbacks, very so to people who do not like reading flashbacks, but they are essential to the plot! To be very honest, I don't really like writing them either.

Word count is 4,136 or something like that, it's shorter than the other one, but there wasn't much I could write in this one.

**Disclaimer: Think about it, if I owned Alex Rider, why on earth would I be writing on ? I wouldn't be sitting in front of a computer; I would be on holiday in Europe.**

**Enjoy!**

"_I already know who you are, Alex!" __shouted a familiar voice._

"_Ben?"_

_**Flashback**_

_The rain was tapping gently on the roof where he was being held. After escaping from the ropes which had tied him to an outrageously uncomfortable chair, he looked out the window. Never had he seen a sky so grey. Things looked bleak from where he stood. With a stolen gun in his right hand, Alex stood frozen while he watched as a familiar figure on the large television screen. He felt the bile rise in his throat as the person dragged his precious housekeeper into a car; its paint which was once an elegant silver, had then reached its final stage of shedding. Alex watched as the person locked Jack inside the filthy car and walked away. _

_The only thing he could do now was escape and pray that he would be in time to save her. He ran to the old metal door, checking whether it was a viable route to freedom, but it was of course, locked. Giving up on getting through the solid barrier, Alex tried the window. Seeing that it was in the same state as its metal friend, he turned to a more violent option. Taking aim with the gun which he had stolen, he shot the window, hoping that it would shatter, giving hope that he could save his beloved 'sister'. His efforts were not repaid, as the glass was bulletproof. The sound of the shot was impossibly echoing throughout the tiny room; mocking his desperate actions. _

_He was surprised as the door opened, revealing a face that he knew too well; Julius Grief. Something was different about him this time, something that made Alex shiver at the sight of the boy. Alex thought that this was his chance; he could escape. Noticing Alex's intent, Julius closed the door quickly behind him; locking them both inside the room. _

"_What do you want?" Alex asked, lifting the gun defensively in Julius's direction, his voice laced with deadly venom. "What have you done to Jack?" _

_Julius didn't answer, instead head gestured Alex to look at the screen. The car was still in the same place, he looked closer and Jack gagged and bound, frantically trying to escape her dirty prison. Alex couldn't help but wonder why Jack was so desperate to get out of the car; obvious reasons aside, she was safe enough in there, she didn't have a manic in the same room as her, why was she so… Alex's thoughts were cut off as he saw what Julius had in his hand. It was a small object, it fit easily in his palm, what distressed Alex the most was the small area that looked a lot like a button. A cruel smirk appeared on Julius's face as he held up the object so Alex could have a better look. _

_He felt his stomach dropped to the ground as realised the truth, why Jack was so scared and why Julius had such a sadistic grin on his mouth. "Why?" Alex asked desperately. _

"_Why not?" Julius smirked. Slowly he lowered his thumb on the button. _

"_Stop!" Alex shouted, aiming the gun towards his evil 'twin'. _

"_Tut, tut Rider. You don't have the guts shoot me," he sneered. "You couldn't kill someone. You're the good guy; you would never kill someone in cold blood." His mocking tone left Alex speechless. Julius's finger closed in on the detonator and Jack was torn apart._

_A bloodcurdling scream ripped through his throat as the car blown apart by the force of the bomb. Letting the rage wash over him, Alex took aim and fired. His was startled as something slammed his chest, making him fall backwards. Reaching up to the source of the pain, Alex pulled his hand back and saw blood dripping down his fingers. Weak and in pain, made his way to the wall behind him. Leaning against it, his surveyed the room; there was no one else in there, just him and Julius. _

_Alex's mind was clouding, not only with pain, but also with curiosity. Julius had no gun, the window was bullet proof, there wasn't a hole in the door, the building was made of brick, he heard one shot and he fired once. How could it be that he was also shot? How did it land in the same place as his? It was almost as if it was mirrored directly. _

_The body of the other boy started to move from the position on the floor. The boy pushed himself off of the ground with grace, seemingly not affected by the bullet. His face had again, taken form of the sadistic smirk that was constantly on his face. Julius was bleeding, but certainly not in pain. Gently touching the blood that was dripping with his fingers he shook his head. "What do you think you're doing Alex?" _

"_Julius, how did you-"_

"_I'm not Julius."_

"_Then who are you?" Alex asked weakly, he was sure the bullet had hit some vitals, but he was miraculously staying alive. _

"_Think Rider, who do you think I am?" _

_There was an eerie silence as he looked his clone over; lean, but muscular body, golden tanned skin, unruly sandy blonde hair and dark brown, serious, hollow looking eyes. There was nothing wrong with him, Julius was the perfect clone. Perfect… a little too perfect. Julius looked the like him, but he was never the same. The angle of his nose was one of many, when did Julius become so much like him? Unless, what he said was true. Alex's eyes widened as the truth dawned on him; this boy was not Julius, but Alex himself. _

"_So, I guess you finally realised," he mocked. _

"_B-but it can't be true," Alex couldn't believe his eyes, how could there possibly be two of him? "But you're so different from me! You're just someone else!"_

"_I think you've got something wrong," reading his mind. "There isn't two of you Alex, I am you and you are me. The only difference between you and me is I seem to be on the bad side and you seem to be on the good side. But really, if I am you and you are me, then who's to say who's good or bad?"_

"_But if you're me and I'm you, then…" Alex trembled at the thought, if the person who killed Jack and him are actually the same person…_

"_Ah, you seem to have stumbled on the truth," he laughed. "I am you, so if I killed Jack, then it also means that you killed her. Did you hear that? You. Killed. Her."_

"_No, no that can't be true," Alex screamed. "You're a fake, I am different from you. You an evil, sadistic bastard, that takes pleasure in causing pain. You're evil and I'm not!"_

_The 'fake' Alex laughed, "You can what you want, but how can you say that I'm evil. You shot me or in this case yourself, in cold blood. Jack was dead, you pulled the trigger in rage, the only thing you wanted was revenge. Ask yourself that, because I know we have the answer." _

"_No! You're lying!" _

"_Don't make me do this," the 'fake' Alex had his arm around Alex's neck, causing the boy to gag. "We killed her, and you know it. If you really think I'm evil, then so are you. Face the facts Alex, I am you and you are me. How many times do I have to say that to get it into your thick skull?"_

"_You're just saying that you have a thick mind as well!" he gasped._

"_Aha! You finally got it!" _

"_No!" _

"_It doesn't matter, you'll die anyway, I just thought you should know why."_

"_What?" Alex could barely talk, 'fake' Alex's arm was around his neck so tight it was a wonder why he was still alive._

"_She wants us dead, Alex. She wants revenge!" he struggled against the grip, "Jack wants you to feel immense pain before you die. After all, we did get her into this mess. We _could_ have said no, we _could_ have left her in England, but I guess you were just too damn stupid." _

"_If what you were staying was true," he coughed, "then aren't you being a hypocrite?" _

'_Fake' Alex nodded, "Yes, I guess I am. Whatever, she want me to strangle you, to make it slow, to cause you pain. Really it would be the same if I was to kill myself, but I've never been the suicidal type."_

'It would still be suicide, you bastard!' _Alex thought to himself. He took as big breath of air as the arm around his neck was taken off, but was quickly replaced but ten deadly fingers. He choked as he tried to retaliate, but weakened by blood loss, he was unable to do much. He felt his blood boil, starting from his toes, spreading upwards towards his brain, Alex opened his mouth to release a silent scream. As the heat reached his chest, it was only made worse by 'fake' Alex's grip on his throat. _

_Alex thought his was going to explode, as the boiling blood reached his brain, as his death came closer, he could only think of regret. Regret that he brought Jack to Cairo, regret that he didn't say no to those sick manipulating bastards at MI6 and regret that he aimed at his biggest enemy, only to discover his enemy was no other, than himself. Giving up, he welcomed the dark abyss that was death. Just as the dark spots appeared before his eyes, Alex heard something ring. _

_Alex shot open as he woke up from his nightmare, sitting up he slowly listened for sounds within the Pleasure household. No sound, _'Good,'_ he thought. Once again, Alex had stooped himself from screaming out. His heart and mind were still racing from the dream, he checked the clock; five o'clock, it was time for his run. Changing into his running clothes and grabbing his phone, Alex slipped out the door quietly, not wanting to wake someone up. _

_Sitting on his favourite bench in the park, Alex took out his phone. To his surprise there was a text message received at five o'clock._

__-Line Break-

Agent 5: _I no who u r!_

_What on earth was another agent contacting him for? Were they trouble? Or are they trying to doing something? Deciding that he needed to find out he texted them back._

Alex: _I don't no who u r, but this isn't funny. Who r u and what do u want? _

_Locking the phone and putting it back into his pocket, Alex ran back to the house. It wasn't until five at noon did he get a reply. _

Agent 5: _Very sorry about that I don't actually know u._

Alex: _Well, what was that txt about then?_

Agent 5: _It's kind of embarrassing, but 1 of my bird-brained friends managed 2 convince me 2 text all the anonymous agents on my phone. Actually, ur very lucky, cuz ur Agent 1 and well as the list goes on, the ruder the txt gets._

Alex: _Well, ur bird-brained friend seems to be very smart if he can get u 2 do something that stupid._

Agent 5: _He can be very convincing when it suits him, also I was drunk._

Alex: _And I guess it was all ur friends fault._

Agent 5: _Yep, I got some very threatening replies from the later Agents._

Alex: _What did u actually say to them?_

Agent 5: _I'd rather no say… all I no is I really need to keep my name secret. In our business making an enemy out of a colleague is not something u want to do. _

Alex: _Well, I wouldn't no, I'm not an agent. _

Agent 5: _Then ur retired? Did Smithers slip u the phone before you leave? _

Alex: _U could say that and yes he did. _

_**A lot a text messages later **_

Alex:_ I started to wake up and I said sorry, but I don't think he'll ever be a shrink again_

Agent 5: _I didn't realise u could b this dangerous _

Alex:_ Yeah, well it's not my fault. I needn't no either._

Agent 5: _So u no longer have a therapist?_

Alex:_ No_

Agent 5: _Do you need one?_

Alex:_ Probably, but I don't think it's gonna work._

Agent 5: _I have an idea!_

Alex:_ Do I want to no?_

Agent 5: _I can b ur shrink! _

Alex:_ Ah, is that a good idea? Do you even have training?_

Agent 5: _Yeah, I did. Anyway I'm qualified to be a nurse and a psychiatrist, but I got into something else._

Alex:_ Well, I don't think u have the clearance. Not that I really care about MI6, what they find out?_

Agent 5: _Screw the 'bank,' I don't really no if I really want to work for them anymore. They have great pay, I don't mind missions, but they're all bastards. _

Alex:_ Y do u still work 4 them then?_

Agent 5: _I'm just looking out 4 some1._

Alex:_ And who is that?_

Agent 5: _No names remember? So what do u think?_

Alex:_ Nah, maybe, but not now. _

Agent 5: _Whatever, whenever you're ready._

Alex: _U sound like a shrink._

Agent 5: _Sorry_.

_-_Line Break-

_Alex didn't know why he couldn't stop talking to this person. It just seemed so easy to talk and joke with someone who knows what ur talking about. This person also reminded him of someone, but really Agent 5 could be anyone. He laughed at the thought of having a shrink through the text messages. _

"_Alex, what are you smiling about?" Sabina asked. "You've been looking at your phone for an hour, Alex. Who are you texting?"_

"_I must be that pretty flight attendant," sneered Edward. "What was her name again?"_

"_Scarlet," replied Liz. _

"_It's not her," said Alex. "It's a… colleague. Or ex-colleague, I'm not too sure how to put it."_

"_Alex," Sabina said warningly. "So they're a spy."_

"_Relax, they're not asking me to do anything and if they do, I'm not doing it. We were just talking." Alex got up from the couch, "Anyway, didn't Liz say it was dinner time?" _

_Supper was great as usual, the tense atmosphere cleared up as the conversation picked up. Edward was talking about his work, mostly about some of his strange colleagues, that don't really do much. Alex's first assumption on Edward's work was correct; the man was doing extremely well. After being employed into a highly rated company, he quickly rose up in the ranks in the company and was now writing the biggest stories. Liz of course was a little worried for her husband, after the incident with Cray she thought that maybe this wasn't the best thing for Edward. Most of the time, the biggest stories are the most dangerous ones. Although his job worries her, being the good wife she was Liz kept quiet. _

_Feeling exhausted from lack of sleep, Alex went to bed early, praying, hoping that he'll get a good night's sleep._

_-_Line Break-

"_You don't believe me do you?" Alex was looking at his 'twin.' He was once again in the little shack that was holding him. Looking around him nothing had changed; Jack was still in the car, bound and gagged. _

"_How am I supposed believe you? You're telling me that I'm going to kill Jack. How the hell I am I supposed to believe that?" Alex snapped._

_The 'fake' Alex shrugged, "Well, we could kill her now." Before Alex say anything 'fake' Alex grabbed his hand and put the detonator in in. "You could blow her up, and then you'll know I telling the truth." Letting go of Alex's hand, 'fake' Alex stood back to see his reaction. _

"_Are you crazy?" he spat. "Do you really think I would do that?" Alex was desperately trying to let go of the detonator, but for some reason he couldn't let go, the thing that disturbed him the most was the urge he had to press the button. It was like he had lost his control over his body and was slowly losing it over his mind. "What did you do?"_

"_I didn't do anything, it too late to turn back. The decisions that we have made have finally taken its toll. Why do I think you'll do this? You have no choice. _We_ have no choice," 'fake Alex jeered. "Yes, there might have been a time where we had a choice, but now things have been decided, unfortunately that means that Jack had to die." _

"_You can be serious," Alex was still struggling to get the detonator out of his hand, being careful not to touch the little button that would a devastating affect. _'How could such a small thing cause so much damage?' _he asked himself. The urge was getting greater, the more he fought the feeling, the stronger it got. If he didn't fight it, then he would press the button._

"_Would give up already?" hissed his evil twin. "Save yourself the pain. Get it over and done with." Alex ignored him, "Well I guess I should just help you." Moving forward, 'fake' Alex pressed down on Alex's thumb which was hovering above the button. The bomb in the car was set off, killing Jack. Shattered Alex fell to his knees, screaming in disbelief. _

_The shock from the dream caused Alex to wake from the nightmare, shooting up from the bed, he sent the covers flying. Groaning as he arrived back to reality, he flopped back into the bed. "I need help," he moaned to himself. Looking at his phone on the bedside table he Alex started to wonder. Staring at his phone, he made his decision._

_-_Line Break-

Alex: _Fine u can be my shrink._

Agent 5: _Hah,_ _I knew u'd say that. Back tell me, what changed ur mind?_

Alex: _A seriously disturbing dream_

Agent 5: _A nightmare, do they happen often?_

Alex: _Yes, but before we start, should we label each other as something? Yes, we keep names out of this, but it shouldn't be just Agent 5 and Agent 1._

Agent:_ So what do u think?_

Alex: _Something appropriate_

Agent 5: _Okay, Anonymous Shrink_

Alex: _Very original._

Agent 5: _Whatever, what about u?_

Alex: _I'll be the Reluctant Patient_

Agent 5: _The Anonymous Shrink and his Reluctant Patient. What a pair?_

_-_Line Break-

_**End of Flashback**_

"Hi," smiled Ben. "You didn't realise I was sneaking up on you? I think your skills are going down the drain."

"Maybe," said Alex standing up. "Did you know it was me all this time?"

"No I didn't," Alex glared at him. "No really, I swear. I only found out a couple of days ago when Smithers was fixing my phone. He told me and I was pretty shocked, my patient is Alex Rider, Cub? Sorry I didn't tell you sooner, thought I'd give you a surprise."

"What are you doing here Ben?"

"Oh come on Alex, I just got here and you're not even polite about it."

"Just answer the question Fox."

Ben shook his head, "I told you, it's a surprise." Alex continued to glare at him, while his face was blank. Smirking he said, "Okay, later. But for now come sit." He sat down on the park bench and motioned for Alex to do the same. "So have things been?"

"Oh come on Ben, you know how it's been. Eating, sleeping, acting." Alex said the last word grimly. "God, it's so annoying. I like it here, but I hate acting."

"I know what you mean," he signed, running a hand through his hair. "But I guess it comes with the job, being a spy."

"I don't want to be a spy and anyway, I wouldn't know. It can't possibly be a job if I never got paid."

"You don't get paid?" asked Ben in debrief, Alex shook his head. "Blood hell, you said you were blackmailed, but you never said you didn't get paid. Why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't tell you anything that would have revealed my identity. If I told you I never got paid, then you'd ask why and well, that would lead to my age. We all know how that would end, you'd guess who I am, end of game."

"Yes, I guess it would have."

"So what are you doing here, you still haven't answered me yet," Alex asked. "They don't want something again do they?" It was obvious to both of them who 'they' were.

Ben shook his head, "No, Alex they don't want you to go on a mission. Mrs Jones is determined not to use you again and neither is her new deputy. With that said…"

Alex's eyes narrowed, "What Ben, what is going on?" Alex mind started to swim, what if MI6 really wanted him to work for them again?

"I don't really know," Ben looked a bit confused himself. "Mrs Jones said she wouldn't use you again and that's what I thought that was going to happen; I really believed that they'd leave you alone."

"But?"

"But I think she's changing, Alex. For a couple of weeks Mrs Jones seemed like herself, blank, emotionless, but not like Blunt. She wasn't ruthless like him, but we all think the stress is getting to her. She's send people to their deaths every day. Sure, she used to do it anyway, but she wasn't in charge. After all, Blunt made the final decisions, she just had a say."

Alex nodded, "I think that position would change anyone. Do you really think that they'd use me again?"

"I don't know, Alex," Ben sighed. "But that's not why I'm here."

"Okay, then why are you here? Does your arrival have anything to do with those ammeter agents disappearing?"

Ben looked at him, raising an eyebrow. "You noticed?"

"Come on!" chuckled Alex, "They were horrible. I think they were very lucky they were following me and not some maniac with a gun. I didn't know what the hell they were doing, but my bets were on the MI6."

"So, you noticed those agents, but not me? How does that work?"

"I don't know, also you changed the topic!" Ben shrugged at him, "So why are you here?"

"Well, my superiors thought it would be a good idea on checking up on you and thought that it would be better if they sent a more experienced agent." Ben pointed a thumb towards himself, puffing his chest, in a joking manner.

"You, experienced? You've got to be joking right? I bet they're just pulling your leg." Ben glared at him, "Okay, okay, I admit, you're better than those other imbeciles. But there's another reason, isn't there?"

"Well, they thought they'd give me a more… slow paced mission," Ben said slowly. "The other mission I had after our last encounter was a little vigorous the injury."

The image of Ben lying on in a pool of his own blood suddenly flashed up in Alex's mind. Shivering, Alex said, "I'm sorry about that. You know the…" he pointed at his shoulder. "I tried to stay, but they dragged me back to England for _safety_."

"No need for an apology," shrugged Ben. "I'd rather you were safe, then hanging around waiting to be attacked."

"Ben?"

"Hmmm?"

"When you said that the only reason that you were still in MI6, was because you had to watch over someone," Alex gulped, "was that person me?"

Ben smiled and ruffled Alex's hair, "Yes."

"Why?"

"I don't know. I think that after the mission, I started to think of you as my little brother," Ben smiled weakly.

"I've always wanted a brother. My uncle was always away, I had Jack, but it's not the same."

"Same," sighed Ben. "Siblings were something that my friends complained about, but I thought it would be nice to have a little brother or sister… Now we're just being sappy!"

"Oh crap! I really hate that! But do you know why they'd want me to check on me?"

"Well, I think they know that we've been in contact."

"What? I thought-" Alex felt his head hurt and his heart race.

"No need to fret Alex," said Ben calmly. "They don't know what we've been talking about. Smithers did a good job at sealing the phone connections, if we don't let them in, they can't see anything, even Smithers."

"Okay, what are you supposed to be checking on?"

"Ah, I should be checking on how you're going with your new family, your psychological health and you'll soon be going to school, so, I guess that as well. Then I need to report. But really I think there's something else."

"Why do you say that?"

"This is _you_ we're talking about, there's always something else."

_-Line Break-_

**AN: **So, how did you guys like that? Please, please, please review! I thought that people might think, "You didn't review to our stories, why should we review yours?" so I decided to join the Review Revolution! For people who want to know or want to join it too, please go to my profile page. Basically it just means that I now have to review every single story that I read!

So please review and I've got a couple of questions, some are story related and some are not:

Who do you think should become the deputy? Mr Crawley or some other random?

Do people want fast and short updates or long and slow updates

Should I change the summary on the site, if so, what should I put on it?

Also for people who review; you want me to reply directly or on the updates?

Okay people please review, because hits mean nothing, it could mean you like it, hate it or some giant spider jumped out of the TV as you were watching Harry Potter, causing you to press the mouse, opening my story!

Review people, the more reviews, the happier I get, the happier I get, the faster I type! Simple as that!

Also if people review and I don't update fast enough then I'll get guilty, I act almost instantly to guilt, I hate it! The review don't need to be long, just a, "Please update!" would be great!

I am very sorry about any mistakes. Again, I cannot edit myself; I know what I wrote too well. Please feel free to criticize, I need it.

Also school is starting again; I think we all know what that means…

So please review, believe or not, I am still a newbie. We need support!

This is me, still being me (and mind blank! It's 1 am, again another late update)

~Lily Icerem~


	3. Occupational Hazard

**Attempts at a New Life**

Lily Icerem

**Chapter 3: Occupational Hazard**

**Published: 12/05/12**

**Edited: 02/06/12**

**Edit Note: Yeah, very sorry for the mistakes guys... I have no idea where they came from, cause I really thought that I had typed those words in, but I think that they have magically disappeared... Whatever, at least they're fixed now... at least, the ones that Baylee could see of course! (She's half asleep!). **

**AN: **Sorry about the wait, people! I have this science assignment that's worth 40% of my semester grade, so no matter how much I want to write, I have to get that out of the way first! Very sorry about the mistakes in the last chapter, it was one in the morning and I should have known better! I was not in the right mind to update! Very sorry!

A VERY BIG thanks to the people who reviewed! I got woken up at five in the morning, but it was totally worth it, because it was the best review ever. **LarkaTheWhiteWolf**, you're the best! No offence or anything, but it was _hilarious_ and very informative. I hope your keyboard hasn't played up again… hehe.

To the people who wanted fast updates; I'm very sorry, but I am unable to produce good chapters, in such a short period of time… chapter 2 is the proof of that. Look at all the mistakes! Actually, I haven't read it. For some reason I am very reluctant to read anything that I've published…

As always, this has been edited to my personal limit, but as you all know, I have a blind spot for my own mistakes. I am very sorry for that.

**IMPORTANT! The Alex and Ben bit continues straight after Chapter 2.**

**Word Count: **2,427, I know they're getting shorter. Don't fear too much, the chapters are shorter at the moment because there just isn't a lot I could fit in. I ran out of stuff, I know what the next chapter is going to be about. **GIVE ME A WEEK!**

**Disclaimer: **This is FANfiction… I think that says it all!

E**njoy!**

There are people in the world who think they know everything; they think they know what people think, what they do and who they are. They think that they can see past everything; no lies could ever get past _their _eyes, they are arrogant people, stupid people. There are also those who think that everything is what it seems to be, they think that, that is that; there is no other. They have forgotten that there is no such thing is _fair_, not everything is good or bad, black or white. These people can't see between the lines, the shades of grey that surround there life. No, they are forever trapped within their tiny, naïve world, thinking that they know _everything_. How wrong they are, they will never know. They will die not knowing how this cruel world conned them into this life. A life of not knowing what they bargained for. The world is full of these people, they walk past you every day, looking for things that they deem important. Rushing in and out of London's grey boring buildings, searching for money to satisfy their greed, not one of these ignorant people would ever notice the difference between the real world and the world that they live in. The Royal & General Bank is a part of the world that they'd never understand; their little minds could never comprehend the things that those people knew. Not thinking, not realising how much they miss as they see their world. The seemingly innocent building had its flaws, but how could they know? The 'bank' was secret; the place was made to look like what it had been labelled as.

The Royal & General Bank looked like a normal bank. Every morning workers would rush in to start their day, just as everyone else did. Who would have guess that the workers were not your every bankers, but trained agents? Sure, there were some who knew nothing about the things that happen inside the building, but _did_ know not to ask questions. Customers moved in and out of their doors day in day to their appointments, but R&GB did not have 'customers,' those people were actors, civilians who were paid to keep up the cover. No one had an account at R&GB, their loans were so ridiculously high, the no sensible person would ever _think _about going there. People would never have guessed any of that, because everyone thinks that they could see it if that was there, everyone thinks that nothing would happen to them, it might exist and might happen to some else, but not to them.

It's how people work; they think in their own little bubble, caring only for themselves. Manipulating that human nature was the head of the so called 'bank.' Tulip Jones was not the CEO of R&GB. No, the place wasn't what it seemed to be. The bank that no one went to, the bank with the blank faced workers, the bank that labelled itself a bank, was not a bank at all. It was all just a cover; The Royal & General Bank was just the face of the British SIS, also known as MI6.

Sitting at her desk surrounded by mountains of paperwork was the head of MI6, no longer the deputy, but the head. Every time Mrs Jones thought about it, she would laugh inwardly, _'People were so gullible sometimes.' _Putting her pen down, the head of MI6 sighed; her job was really taking a toll on her. She had always kept an unemotional mask, but lately, the mask was becoming natural. She used to be blank and expressionless because it was what her job required, her job was completely taking over, she found that she was expressionless because she didn't have anything to express. Mrs Jones used to have a feeling of regret each time she sent her agents to their _very _possible deaths, but that had slowly faded, things had changed, she was no longer the bystander, she was now making the calls, there was nothing she could do would ever change the fact. The fact that it was _her _that caused their pain, while her agents were out in the field risking their lives, she was sitting at her desk sending more out into the same situation. She was becoming as cold and ruthless as Blunt. Unfortunately, it seemed to be an occupational hazard for her new position.

Agent Daniels said that he had seen Alan Blunt a while ago, he said that he looked different; happy. Apparently he was with his family, smiling. It seemed that Blunt had gotten closer with his family since his 'retirement.' What Agent Daniels had told her had come to a complete surprise. She had worked with the man for many years, he had always been obsessed with his job, it never occurred to her that Alan could ever live without it, but after a couple of months away from his job, somehow he managed to fit perfectly back into a normal life. She had met Alan's wife on several occasions, some were social events before Blunt was promoted, but most were work related, it was because some idiot decided to threaten his family. Mrs Blunt was a pleasant woman, he had two children and they were as friendly as their mother; quite the opposite to their father. Why the woman chose to stay with the cold and emotionless man, she would never know. Alan Blunt wasn't always the unpleasant man that people knew him to be; there had been a time when the man was kind and decent, and according to Mrs Blunt; charming. It was definitely due to the job. She didn't want to become truly cold and blank, but there was nothing she could do to stop it. A break would most likely fix the problem temporarily, but she was being ridiculous the head of MI6 didn't take leaves, it would cause chaos.

A knock at the door broke her train of thought, "Come in," she called. There was nothing she could do, quitting her job wouldn't be the answer, there were no other candidates after her. No other person could handle the job, Mrs Jones herself, doubted her ability as Head.

The door opened and revealed her new deputy; John Crawley. He was good at his job, but his promotion would never get any higher; it stopped where he was. Crawley made a good deputy because of his ability to follow orders. He spoke his mind when it was needed, but if left on his own, he hesitated too much with decisions.

The man walked in calmly with a small mug in his hand, "Good morning Tulip." He placed the small cup on her desk; it was a double espresso. Coffee had become second to her beloved mints.

"Thank you John," they had taken on the first name status since their promotions, it was awkward at first, but it slowly became a habit. "I believed they have been debriefed?" Crawley simply nodded and handed her the thin report. "How did they go?"

"They found nothing," Mr Crawley said calmly. "It seems like Alex has gotten used to America a fits in with his new family. There have been no other signs of SCORPIA since the little incident with NCIS and Axe triads have disbanded because of what happen in New York. All in all, Alex seems to be happy where he is and they found nothing abnormal. With that said, the agents seem to be a little unsure of Alex."

"Do you think he has been acting," she asked. Crawley nodded, she took a deep breath, the boy was a lot of trouble.

"It is very likely that he knew of the agents, while they were watching him, they felt a sense of being watched. They searched, but they never found anything, the feeling, they said, came through when they turned their heads away from Alex. We certainly made a mistake by sending inexperienced agents."

Unfortunately, that was true. They had been running low on people, seeing that the mission was low on danger, they sent less experienced agents to observe Alex; big mistake. "Yes, it was a stupid action, but all other agents were on missions."

"Speaking of other agents, are you sure that pulling out the agents were a good idea?" he asked concernedly. "Can Agent Daniels manage by himself?"

Mrs Jones sighed, "Did you know they've been in contact?"

"What?"

"Alex and Agent Daniels," she repeated patiently, at first, the news had come as a surprise to her as well. "Apparently they had been chatting anonymously through the phones that were distributed by Smithers. Unfortunately, we do not know what they have been talking about; Smithers did his job too well. We haven't been able to crack to system. Actually, I they've given up. We only know there have been over a hundred thousand messages sent between the two. They are very lucky they don't need to pay for them."

"Why weren't we notified sooner?"

"At was a recent discovery, Daniels and Alex themselves had no idea who they were talking to. It's wasn't until Agent Daniels phone needed to be fixed, did Smithers notice that they had been in contact."

Absorbing the new information, Crawley regained himself from the initial shock, "So why send Agent Daniels? He might be a little more experienced, but can he really get anything out of the mission? Five other agents got nothing from the boy."

"At first I was intending on sending other agents to accompany Agent Daniels, but when I called him up to tell him, he said that there was no need for other agents, he could handle it himself." Mrs Jones closed her eyes remembering what the young man had said. "I ask him why and he said that he would use another method to get information."

Crawley shook his head, not understanding what Daniels meant by that, "And what was that?"

"He said he'd go up and ask," she answered bluntly and flinched as she heard the familiar cold tone, but this time, it was coming from her own mouth.

"But what about what happened on the plane?"

"We have no proof that it would cause any trouble. The agent on the plane said they looked familiar, but she couldn't be sure."

"The girl on the plane was nothing but a paid civilian. She wouldn't know how to pick subtle actions," Crawley argued.

"We don't really know whether it has anything to do with Edward Pleasure. We don't even know whether he saw them or not," she was slowly losing her patience.

He couldn't believe what he was hearing, "What about the danger, I am aware that they have not been seen ever since the incident on the plane, but that shouldn't mean we can relax."

"Are you telling me how to do my job?" she was furious, but it didn't show. Mrs Jones was cold, just like Blunt. "Did you know that Alex is claustrophobic? He wasn't before you know? It's all because we've been interfering with his life. I don't think that Alex wants a bunch of agents on his tail all the time. We should give him some space, Daniels will be enough."

Crawley was shocked, how can she be so cold oneminute and so caring the next? Before he could say anything, Mrs Jones cut in, "You are dismissed." With that she unwrapped a peppermint and went back to her forever growing plie of paperwork, her deputy completely forgotten.

What he had heard a thousand times before from a different person, he was now hearing from another person. He closed the door quietly behind him and slumped against it.

What on earth was happening to his superior?

_-Line Break-_

"Do you really think there's something going on?" Alex was worried; there was nothing he could do if MI6 wanted something. He would get hurt again and there was never anything he would gain apart from a multitude of scars and nightmares.

Ben looked worryingly at the boy, his face was pale and he looked like he was in distress, "Hey, Alex relax. I told you already, they don't want anything from you… I think. But they did mention something about Mr Pleasure."

"Edward? What about him?" Alex was confused, what had he gotten into now?

"He's a journalist Alex, what else could it be? My theory is that he has been following a shocking story and the person turns out to an imbecile who wants to destroy the wold."

"Very original."

"What? It's a very reasonable theory."

"Still. Did they really not tell you?" Alex looked at Ben seriously.

Ben smirked and said, "You know just as well as I do. When do they ever tell you anything?"

"I just thought it would have been different to real agents," Alex said tiredly.

"No such luck kiddo," laughed Ben, ruffling Alex's hair. "They don't tell us much either, you find out anyway, but it's not pleasant."

Alex was struggling out of Ben's teasing hold, "First of all; don't call me kiddo. Second of all; ouch! No need to be so ruff!"

The older man chuckled and let go of the poor boy. Deciding that he wouldn't let Ben get away with what he had done, Alex tackled the man to the ground. They started to wrestle playfully while laughing. Ben eventually pinned Alex to the ground and tickled the boy brutally. There was nothing Alex could do but beg for mercy. By the time Ben had let Alex go, the boy had tears rolling down his cheeks; his hair was ruffled far beyond the usual standard. The boy looked younger than Ben had ever seen him.

Alex glared at the man furiously and sensing that the boy wanted revenge, Ben made a run for it. With an angry teenager hot on his heels Ben ran mindlessly around the park. Still exhausted from his run, Alex was unable to catch the ex-SAS man. Ripping up grass from the ground, Alex threw it at Ben. The man stopped immediately shaking his shirt trying to get the grass out. Failing miserably you resorted to copying Alex. Soon their war turned into a grass fight, tearing up a third of the parks once amazing green lawn.

Feeling exhausted and covered in grass, the two of them flopped onto the grass lying on their backs. Staring at the impossibly blue sky, they laughed; wholeheartedly and truly. Neither of them had felt that happy in a long time.

They were happy and absolutely oblivious to the man watching them from the shadows.

_-Line Break-_

**A/N: **How did you like it?

Please, please, please review!

I know that it's a little late, but I had so much to do. Actually I should be doing some schoolwork right now, but I couldn't leave you guys hanging. Aren't I nice?

THERE ARE GOING TO BE MISTAKES IN THIS! IS NOW 4AM AND I'M REALLY NOT IN THE RIGHT MIND TO UPDATE… AGAIN.

Please feel free to point out mistakes! Like actually point then out, cause I will fix them.

**Question:**

**What kind of story do you want? Do you want a longer story where heaps of stuff happens and action is spread out through the whole thing? Mind you, this is a three part series, so this might take forever. Or do you want a shorter story where the action is intense, but you get a lot less of it? **

Really, I prefer really LONG stories, but I've been thinking about that question for a while.

**IMPORT BIT OF THE AN!**

**Next update should come out next week! School's on and I have an insane amount of stuff to do, but I'm naughty so I do thing that I shouldn't.**

**If you're really lucky, I might decide to go and really screw myself up by writing tomorrow, instead of doing my assignments (due on Monday), if I do, you might get Chapter 4 sooner. I'd be royally screwed, but at least I'll be satisfied.**

Please, please, please review!

It doesn't have to be long and I listened to **Bookdancer** and turned on the **Anonymous Review **thing, so please review.

It's really not that hard, I know because I've been reviewing like a stalker… sorry about that; Review Revolution and all.

Hehe, anyways… REVIEW.

SORRY I'M COLD AND REALLY SLEEP DEPRIVED, WHICH MAKES ME SLIGHTLY HIGH.

And OH GOD, my finger just froze up! Not joking!

This is me being me (slightly… okay, really high, mind-blank and slightly insane)

~Lily Icerem~


	4. The Dragon Lady and Her Broom

**Attempts at a New Life**

Lily Icerem

**Chapter 4: The Dragon Lady and Her Broom**

**Published: 26/05/12**

**Edited: 02/06/12**

**Edit Note: Again sorry for the mistakes people! Hehe, don't know if there's anymore, but I still think that Baylee's awesome! She's only human people! I didn't actually send any of the chapter to her beforehand, we only decided that she'd be my beta the afternoon after I posted it! **

**A/N: **Oh. My. Freaking. God. I am sorry! I haven't disappeared off the face of the earth! Yay! I know this is a little late… okay very late, but I've been so freaking busy it's just not funny! I've been working on my science assignment, that is really all my fault, but I really needed to finish it on Tuesday and on Wednesday, I had to finish/start my cheat sheet for SOSE. I slept at about four for both occasions… it doesn't sound too bad, but I haven't had enough sleep for weeks and I get up at six. So you do the maths… four to six… "I wonder how much sleep she gets?" Oh, and I didn't do it on Thursday because I really needed to sleep! My friend and I were like, "I finally get to sleep tonight!" Yeah, apparently he stayed up four doing his cheat sheet as well… He is also in level one so we get the same assignments; this includes the cursed science assignment! I swear the only reason it was written was to torture us students!

Okay, enough of my school related ranting, they're really not that interesting, but I like to say them anyway. Also, another reason as to why this chapter is late is because I have recently gotten addicted to another fandom… Please don't kill me! I haven't been reading anything to do with this fandom and I haven't been reviewing… hehe, as you can tell, I feel a little guilty about this all, so… I hope you like this chapter!

Please review! Also, I have finally worked out the evil plot to this story! Hehe, took me a while, but I think I've got most of it down pat…

**Warning! ** A little bit of friendly fluffiness... I'm not really sure how it got there and Alex may or may not seem a little OOC, but hey, it depends on how you think. I think it's fine for Alex to be a little soft… he's been through too much.

**Disclaimer: **Oh, I wish…

**Enjoy!**

The man looked across the path at the pair; a boy with sandy blonde hair and a young man with dark brown hair and eyes. They were an odd looking pair, they were not related, their age gap wasn't huge, but it was big enough to separate them. They were very different in many ways, but why were they so similar? Both the man and boy seemed to fit in together. In appearance, there was nothing similar about them, but looking closer there was definitely an element that made them alike. They seemed to have a sense of secret understanding between them, something that no one would know but themselves.

No one would have guessed who they were; not just friends in the park, but a pair of government spies. If the mysterious man hadn't been told the facts before hand, he never would have known. _'Spies don't act like that, do they?' _he thought to himself. From his experience, government spies were cold and controlled creatures, they were very much like assassins; only what they did was approved by the government, making it completely legal. The man sighed, there was a time when he had thought about being a spy, it was safer and with his abilities, he would have made it to the top, there was nothing stopping him, but the pay was better working as an assassin. The man that he worked for was a reasonable man; you get paid as long as you follow orders. Failure does not mean death, only harder missions with less pay. It was harsh, but it was definitely better than SCORPIA.

Looking at the laughing pair, he wondered the point of his job. _'How could a boy like that possibly be Britain's top spy?' _he could understand why MI6 would employ a boy to do their dirty work. The man wasn't a good person, but he didn't like the thought of hurting children. With that said, the man couldn't deny that there was something special about the boy. There was a certain coolness I his eyes, he had seen too much for age. The assassin wasn't there to kill, but to observe. He had thought it was mad when his superior had said it to him, but the man had explained it to him. _"Do not under estimate the boy; he is just as dangerous as a trained assassin. The boss wants you to observe and nothing else. The boy's guardian is a journalist and he might have seen him on the plane. You must assess the situation and report back. I repeat; do NOT underestimate him, SCORPIA made that mistake and you know how that went." _He didn't object after that, but there was nothing stopping him from thinking it.

The man didn't need to be named, unlike the stupid armatures that had followed Rider before, he would never be noticed, the man would soon finish his assignment, without anyone knowing he was ever there… as long as nothing turned up. The assassin prayed that the boy's adoptive father was smart enough to stay out of this. There was nothing worse than having to exterminate a whole family, but looking at the footage from the plane, the man had definitely seen something. The assassin could only hope that the man would stay out of it all, because if he was caught, it wouldn't just be him in danger; his friends, colleges and family would all have to die. The man's organisation took no chances; everyone would be hunted down, no mistakes were to be made with the current operation.

_-Line Break-_

Alex and Ben lay in the grass as they wiped the tears from their eyes. Gazing up at the clear morning sky, they slowly came back to their senses. "Oh my god, Alex!" said Ben, "What have you done?"

Looking at the man Alex let out a laugh, "You started it. Who asked you to tickle me? You just got off lightly."

Glaring playfully at Alex, Ben stood up and stretched. Grass rained out from his clothes as he bushed his hands against them. "You know, you look a lot worse than I do?"

"What?" standing up, Alex patted own his clothes. "What do you mean, I look worse?"

"Have you looked at your hair lately?" Ben chuckled as the teen ran a hand through his hair, or rather attempted to. His hand got caught halfway in the knots. Alex's naturally unruly hair had become a bird nest; green bits of dead grass were woven through his hair. The teen cursed colourfully in three different languages, trying to pry the knots out of his hair. Ben smirked, "Hey, watch your language young man." Laughing, he walked over to the frustrated teen, "Do you need any help, Kiddo?"

"No, I do not need your help, Ben!" Alex glared at the man playfully. "I'm not a kid, so don't treat me like one and don't call me Kiddo!" Ben chuckled at the state of the boy, giving up with the 'angry' tactic, Alex soon joined in with the man. Still exhausted from their mad run-around, they pair soon returned to their comfortable spot on the glass. "So what do you think you're going to do?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean what you're going to do if you already know what I'm doing?" Alex sighed. "You're here because you have to check on me Ben. Now that you know, what's left for you here?"

"Alex, don't say that." Ben was a little startled at the boy's words, _'Why would he think that of me?' _ Of course, Ben already knew the answer to that, the missions that Alex had been sent on, had turn the boy's thoughts cynical.

"Why not? You're here because of your job-"

"A job that I don't really want anymore," Ben broke in. "Alex, I've told you before. I don't want to be in MI6 anymore, I 'm just there because I want to watch out for you." Alex was about to argue the man's lecture, but Ben continued. "I know that you don't want to be babied like a helpless child, but you have to understand that you're still a kid. I know that you can look after yourself, but everyone needs someone to look out for them, Alex. So, I'm going to do it whether you like it or not." Ben said firmly, his face was hard with determination, but as he realised how shocked Alex was, his expression softened. "Alex, I've never really gotten along with my employers, but after I heard what they forced you to do, I really wanted to make sure that you were alright. Alex, just let me do something, because I know I can't help all that much. Just let me help you as much as I can, I don't want to feel so useless."

Alex was in total shock, it had been a while since Jack had died, but hearing Ben talk like that brought back some memories. Where had he heard that before? Had Jack said something like that to him before? Ben's face was filled with worry, Alex remembered when Jack was alive, he had often seen the same desperate expression on her face. Had Jack felt the same helplessness that Ben was describing then? He recalled a conversation with his beloved housekeeper. It was true; Jack had said that she felt like she couldn't do anything to help him, like she was nothing but a bystander, unable to do anything. Even though Alex knew that she was unable to help him with his missions, Alex kept Jack by his side, because in reality, Jack did a lot more than cleaning.

Jack had been the support that the boy needed. Every time he came back from one of his missions, Alex would always look forward to seeing her. There was nothing better than seeing her safe and unharmed. He told her about his mission, though he left out the dangerous things, Jack would always fret and say that he was reckless. She didn't understand him, but it was always nice to talk to someone. There was Tom, but it just wasn't the same. Jack was his sister and that made the world's difference to Alex. It hadn't always been that way, they had their bad days, but as Alex became to love and understand his housekeeper and so did she. All of that was gone now; there was nothing he could do to get her back.

Could Alex really replace her with Ben? No, it wasn't really replacing, he was simply finding someone else to rely on. Did Alex really want to put Ben in the same danger that he had put Jack in? There was nothing more that Alex wanted to do than to hug the caring man, but restrained himself. In a way, Ben was like that brother that he never had. Would his life be any different if he had a brother? There was nothing he could do to change the past, so he stopped thinking in that direction.

The matter at hand was more important; Alex stared up at the sitting man. Alex knew that what he really needed at that moment wasn't isolation from others, but someone who knew him. Ben was from the same world that he was from. The man understood the boy because their 'occupations' connected them. It was ironic to think that something good came out of his horrible job. If Alex hadn't been a spy, then he would never have Ben. The ex-SAS man could look after himself, he was a spy. His mind instantly turned to Turner and Troy, they were spies but they didn't turn out so well. He wiped the thought from his brain; it wasn't the time to think about that, or rather Alex didn't want to think about that.

It was time to have someone to protect him in his life, someone who could understand him; that person was Ben. His thoughts were broken by Ben's hand in front of his face.

"Alex," he said worriedly. "What were you thinking about? You were just staring at me. I didn't freak you out did I?"

Alex didn't reply, he suddenly lost control of his body and sat up to hug the man. Wrapping his arms around Ben, Alex buried his head into his chest. Alex couldn't feel the last time he felt so safe. Growing up with his uncle constantly away on missions, he had never really had someone to protect him. Jack was there… but again, it just wasn't the same.

Ben was in a state of shock, he never expected Alex to open up like that. He knew that the boy needed someone, but he never thought that he was so vulnerable. He pulled the small boy closer, gathering warmth.

They pulled apart after a while, each coughing awkwardly, but smile only a second later. It was very close to noon, which meant that they had been in the park for several hours. "Ben?" asked Alex, the spy turned towards him, "Do you want to come over for lunch?"

Ben chuckled as he thought about how quickly the boy had opened up to him, he really did care for Alex, "Sure, all that running around got me a little hungry."

"Same," Alex smirked.

"Wait, do you think that the Pleasures would mind?"

"No, their fairly hospitable people," said Alex flatly, but laughed when he remembered something."

"What?" asked Ben, he was a little worried, Alex was friendly, but he was still a teenager, there was nothing stoping him from being sneaky, _'God knows what he might be up to."_

"Don't worry Ben," snickered Alex, "There's nothing to worry about! Well…"

"What?" said Ben, stressing the 'a.'

Alex shook his head, "Really it's nothing. It's just that the Pleasures have taken a disliking to spies or any federal agents. That's why we'll have to explain very quickly to them that you're not a normal spy."

"What happens if we don't do it fast enough?"

"Well, I don't really want to remind myself," he said in refusal, "Let's just say that Liz is pretty scary when she's angry."

"Do I want to know?"

Alex shook his head, "It really wasn't a pretty picture." Ben just gave a small nod. "So are you still up for lunch?"

Ben thought for a moment, something was telling him to say no, but what can a woman do to a man? He was Alex's friend wasn't he? _'Yeah, I should be fine,' _he thought. "Okay, why not? Do you want to call them first?"

Alex face lit up when he heard Ben was coming over for lunch, "No, it should be fine. As I said, it should be fine as long as we're quick. Anyway, Liz makes a mean meal."

"Okay then, off to the dragon lady we go," sighed Ben sarcastically.

"Don't let her hear you say that."

With that the pair walked towards the Pleasure household, not knowing what was awaiting them. **(A/N: I was really going to end it here, but I'm nice, so read on.)**

_-Line Break-_

Alex looked at the man beside him anxiously, Ben looked a little strange. Alex wondered if Ben was scared of the thought of Liz. He was slightly right when he said 'dragon lady,' Liz could be very intimidating when she wanted to be. If Ben was lucky, he would get a wacked with a broom, if he wasn't… Alex didn't really want to think about what happened to the NCIS agent that had driven back that day. All he could think of was, _'Not pleasant.' _

Walking to the Pleasure's house was strangely nerve-wracking for Ben. The man had faced more than that, but he didn't really know how he would face a woman swinging a broom at him. Would he just stand there or would he actually do something about it? Ben could never hit a woman, but could he just stand there and let himself get hit? Ben paled at the thought.

"Hey Ben, what are you thinking about? You look a little bizarre."

"I'm just thinking."

"About what?" Alex was truly curious, what could really make an SAS man look like that, must have been at of the ordinary.

The spy chuckled at his own actions, what was he thinking? "Nothing, I was just wondering what I'll do if she was really to attack me."

"I don't know, I don't think you'd hit her," Ben shook his head. Alex continued, "Then I guess you'll just have to stand there and let her hit you."

"Alex!" exclaimed Ben, "That's not funny! Why can't I just dodge?"

The blonde shook head in amusement, "Nup! For one you're not _that _good and before you shout at me; it's true, face it. Also, you'll be too shocked to do anything. That's exactly what happened to that NCIS agent."

"What happened?"

"Again, I'm just telling you Ben."

Playfully ignoring each other, Ben lost himself to his thoughts again. "We're here," Alex cheerfully woke Ben from his daydream. "Are you ready?"

The man suddenly lost his composure, as he looked at the elegant house, the only thing he could think of was the dangers lying within.

"Come on Ben, it's gonna be fine," Alex turned towards the door smirking. He really didn't know what was going to happen, but he was sure that it was going to be _hilarious._

Ben watched as Alex took out the keys from his pocket, Ben gulped as he saw the door opened. His had no clue as to what was waiting for him behind the doors.

"Hey, I'm back," called Alex.

"Oh god we were wondering where you went," said Sabina. "Hey mum, Alex is back."

Edward was reading his newspaper, but he looked up to see Alex at the door, "You're a little late Alex, Liz was very worried.

"Alex!" Liz was dusting some vases with a feather duster.

'_That's going to make a good weapon for Liz. Oh dear, Ben's gonna have a hard time,' _thought Alex. "Yeah, sorry I'm a little late. I sort of got caught up."

Everyone's attention was brought to Ben who had gone unnoticed up until that moment. The man brought a hand up to say 'hi,' but was stopped by a loud, "You're a spy!"

The room erupted into chaos when the duster that was in Liz's hand flew magically out the door, missing Ben's head by millimetres. The next few seconds were full of shouts and yells as a broom materialised out of thin air into Liz's hand. "You, got out of my house!" she yelled.

"Liz put down the broom," Edward said firmly.

"Mum," exclaimed Sabina.

But all their words were ignored as Liz saw only red. "How dare you walk into to my house? What do you want? There's nothing for you here, leave." With that said, the angry woman started to hit Ben with the broom. The spy tried his best to avoid the violent blows, but was too disoriented from the shock.

The raucous room slowly went quiet as all the occupants noticed quiet laughs from the blonde boy in the corner. Throughout the assault of the spy, Alex had been restraining himself from laughing out loud, but his control over his throat became too great and soon his laughter became too much for him to control.

Everyone in the room looked at Alex curiously as he was doubled over in fit of laughter, totally oblivious to the angry glares that were directed to him.

"What's so funny?" asked Liz.

Sabina could only shrug, "I have absolutely no clue, mum."

"I don't think anyone would know what Alex is thinking about," sighed Edward.

The three Pleasures were in total confusion; Ben on the other hand was fuming. He walked slowly over to the boy, making sure that he didn't alert him.

Alex slowly looked up at the angry figure that was Ben, "I'm so it was just so funny. You're not mad are you?"

Ben shook his head; there was a dangerous glint in his eyes, "No Alex, not at all." The spy suddenly leaped forward pinning the boy to the ground. "But I still think you deserve a punishment." He started to tickle the withering boy beneath him. Couldn't do anything but giggle and shriek hysterically.

"Please Ben, stop, stop," squealed Alex, but Ben continued on with his relentless tickling.

More confused than before, the Pleasures did nothing but stare at that laughing pair. Sabina was the first to brake at of the trance, "Wait, Ben? Wasn't that the SAS man who took a bullet for you or something?"

"Ex-SAS actually and I didn't really take a bullet for him. I simply opened a door and forgot to look into the room before entering," Ben corrected her; he turned back around and continued to torture Alex.

Liz's stunned expression soon turned into an apologetic smile, "I'm so sorry. I didn't realise I was hitting Alex's friend."

"That's oaky Mrs Pleasure," smiled Ben, he stopped and got up. "It was Alex's fault for not explaining things." He glared playfully at Alex, who returned a teary glare of his own.

"I'm glad you're so forgiving, other agent wasn't," Liz said, looking into space. "Anyway, don't call me Mrs Pleasure, Liz is fine with me."

"Please to meet you Liz," shaking hands with Liz. "I'm Ben Daniels and just Ben, in fine."

"My name is Edward Pleasure, but you can call me Ed." Shaking hands with Ben, who nodded his head slightly.

"Sabina," she said. Sabina shook hands with Ben and walked over to Alex who was trying to wipe eyes of the tears. "Hey Alex, what is Ben doing here?" she asked happily.

"Well, I met Ben at the park and I decided to invite him for lunch since we were both hungry," Alex explained, "Sorry I didn't call first, but I thought that there was no need. I thought that maybe if we were first enough, Liz wouldn't get angry. But it was just too funny and I was too stunned to say anything."

"Ah well," sighed Liz. "What's done is done. I'm just about to cook lunch. Have a seat Ben, and again, I'm very sorry about that." With that she turned to the kitchen.

_-Line Break- _

"So Ben," Edward took a sip on his drink, "Where have you been staying?"

"Oh, just a hotel," sighed Ben. "It's nice and everything, but my neighbours are such pains. They have parties every night and the hotel is full so I can't change rooms."

"What sort of parties?" smirked Sabina.

"Sabina!" warned Liz.

"Anyway Ben," Edward broke in, "if you don't mind, you can stay with us."

"Really?" Alex and Ben chorused.

Liz nodded, "Let's just say, it's a way to say sorry for hitting you with a broom."

Ben chuckled, "That would be great!"

"Yeah, maybe we'll go pick your stuff up from the hotel once we're done," exclaimed Alex. He wanted Ben to be there with him. He was surprised at how close he and Ben had gotten in a day.

"Well then," Ben said, "after lunch it is."

_-Line Break- _

**A/N: **So how did you like it? Please review! I would really like to know what you guys think!

**A BIG thank you to all those who reviewed! Every word was appreciated. **

A shout out to **Baylee Shadow** and **FreedomsCage**, who edited the first two chapters! That was great!

Anyway, why am I focusing on Ben and Alex so much?

Is something going to happen to Ben?

Will something BIG happen in the next couple of chapters?

I am messing with your minds?

Or did I say that just to toy with the concept?

Do you really think I'd tell you all that? Don't be daft people.

I'm really not as nice as I seem to be…

Yes, there is absolutely no such thing as sweet little Lily. I can be as nasty as I want to be… I can be anything as long as it suits me.

So yeah people, stay tuned!

Please review… right now, I am feeling nice and a little childish…. Whatever, hehe.

Mistake warning… again it's like 2:40am and I am soooooo tired and cold that all my touch typing has gone down the drain. Muscle memory does NOT work when it's cold.

Please, please, please review!

This is me being me (cold, sleepy and a little high)

Have I ever told you that I love you?

No?

Good! I bloody hope not!

I _hate_ that SENTIMENTAL **CRAP**!

~Lily Icerem~


	5. I've Got You Now

**Attempts at a New Life**

Lily Icerem

**Chapter 5: I've Got You Now **

**Posted: 01/10/12**

**Edited: 03/10/12**

**A/N: **To all those who have read this story before, I am very sorry. I haven't really been able to write this thing. I just can't seem to get dialog right. *sigh* I am REALLY sorry about the OOC-ness… I really hate it. I can't write. This is sort of a filler… so sorry.

Oh, and this chapter's beta is **youngjusticefanatic**, thank god, 'cause if it wasn't for her I think you'd all die after reading this chapter. Be WARNED, I didn't send her the right file so half of it hasn't been beta-ed… yes, yes, I know. I've been very silly. So a VERY big thank you to **youngjusticefanatic**, my actual beta is spending time down the coast and she has no internet… yeah, I'm sure I could have gotten it to her somehow… well, I'll you alone now. I'll tell you when the un-beta-ed bit comes up.

**(Edit Note): **I noticed that the note above looks like **youngjusticefanatic **is away, but she's not… I actually mean that my usual beta, **Baylee Shadow **is away (she's down the coast for a week), so yeah, just to clear things up. Okay this chapter has officially been edited TWICE by **youngjusticefanatic **AND **Fate's Silver Chain**! So YAY! There is NO unbeta-ed bit now!

I am now using quotes as 'Line Breaks'.

**Quote of the Chapter: **If at first you don't succeed… parachuting is NOT for you.

**Warnings! **Horrendous OOC-ness caused by chronic writer's block.

**Disclaimer: **People? How does 'Lily Icerem' look anything like 'Anthony Horowitz'? I have no idea how you guys read, but this is ridiculous!

**Enjoy! (… Damn, I've run out of coffee!)**

There was someone watching them, Ben was sure of it. He did not register the pressured feeling at the park, but he could certainly feel it now. Although the man was fairly far away, Ben could feel their eyes on him and Alex. From his experience, their tracker seemed to be professional, if it wasn't for his limited field experience; Ben would have never picked the sensation up. There was a certain air around the follower that screamed dangerous, the person was an assassin and there was no doubt about it. The thing that worried the spy the most was Alex.

Walking besides the oblivious boy, Ben thought as several emotions washed over him. He was happy that Alex had opened up to him in the way that he had, but there are certain problems with trusting someone so much. Ben was sure that if the boy was alert he would have realised the threat that was following them. Unfortunately for both of them, Alex was nothing but relaxed beside the spy, he had forgotten that he was still in danger. All of that made Ben's work a lot harder than it should have been.

The Biggest problem now was not the distant assassin; they were not here to attack, they were here merely to observe. If they were here to threaten their wellbeing, Ben would have felt it. No, this problem was not the potential treat, but Alex himself. The question that Ben faced was the decision of telling Alex.

He was sent to America to observe Alex's current lifestyle. The agents that were sent before had reported no threats and described Alex life as safe, but it seemed that they were wrong. The assassin might have been observing Alex and the Pleasures from the beginning, but the agents were too inexperienced to realise it. Ben couldn't say that he was too experienced himself, but his time in the SAS had helped him in his current occupation.

If Ben's theory was correct, then Alex and the Pleasures would be in danger. The assassin was experienced, no matter what organisation had called the operation; there was definitely danger if there was an assassin. If it were a general observation task, a normal experienced agent would be sufficient for the job, but it was an assassin. Assassins aren't normally employed for observation tasks, unless there was another side to the job. Ben didn't know what the 'other was' or how it was triggered, all he knew was that it most certainly would involve death.

The right thing to do would be to tell Alex, but should he really tell him? The boy was happy and from what Alex had told him; happiness was hard to come by. Did Ben really want tell him something that would cause the emotion to fade away? _Could _Ben do such a thing? It was time someone else took the burden. Alex had had too many stressful situations in his life that involved people's lives being on his shoulders. Was it right to keep something from him? The boy trusted him, it was something that he didn't give out normally, but Alex trusted him, there had got to be some way around it all.

"Ben," it was Alex, "Where did you say the hotel was again?"

Ben looked down at the boy, "Just a little way from here." With that, Alex nodded and looked straight ahead. Ben went back to his thoughts. They had decided to walk to the hotel which Ben was staying, because it was so close, there wasn't much need to drive. Edward had to go to work and Liz and Sabina were getting Ben's rooms ready. Ben would have felt incredibly guilty and would have turned down their offer, but the people who were staying next to him just would not shut up! Ben shrugged; he'd just have to be in their debt, a debt that he might have to repay sooner than he might have thought. Mrs Jones never said that there would be a threat, but she did say that he was to protect them if there was any danger. The man sighed, _'Why do these things always happen to Alex?'_

Realising that they had reached their destination, Ben slowed to a halt and gestured for Alex to go in.

"Good afternoon Mr Daniels," said an attractive receptionist on the front desk. Ben nodded his head politely. "We are very sorry about the noise last night Mr Daniels. Did it keep you up?" She purposely leaned her head down so that her light brown hair fell in front of her eyes, only so that she could flick back up again. After tucking her side fringe behind her ear, she clasped her hands together and rested them on the desk. The receptionist 'subtly' leaned forward so that everyone in front of her could see down her shirt, revealing her cleavage to Ben. Her words were warm and kind, but body language made it very obvious that she was flirting with the man.

Alex smirked as he watched the woman's clumsily hidden desperation, looking around there were a couple of men blushing at the position of the young woman. A sly smile made it across the boy's face as he watched Ben with hope that he'd see something funny.

To Alex's amusement, Ben's face kept up his usual warm, but calm expression. "Thank you for your concern, Miss Greene, but I'm afraid my neighbours have not been as considerate as I would have liked."

"Please Mr Daniels," she blushed. "You can call me Melanie and I am very sorry about Mr and Miss Kelly, but I don't think they know how loud they can be. I hope that tonight will be much more pleasant for you."

"Thank you," replied Ben, ignoring the woman's constant eyelash batting. "Also, there won't be a tonight, I will be checking out today."

The brunette looked shocked at his words, "Why is that?" she asked.

Ben looked down at Alex who had stayed unnoticed by the receptionist throughout the entire conversation, "I bumped into a close friend and his family have graciously invited me into their home. It was an invitation that I could not have refused." Alex smirked inwardly at Ben's words; gracious was not the way to describe the invitation.

A hurt and disappointed look appeared on her face, "Well, I hope you have a great day."

As they turned away, Alex looked back just in time to see the receptionist stare daggers in his direction. Ben stopped from where he was and said, "And Melanie? I think I'll stick with 'Miss Greene'," turning the woman down gently, "formalities are just a way to stay polite." _'And distant,' _he added mentally.

Alex watched as Ben turned back and walked in his direction in front of the elevator. Miss Greene had a pout on her face, looking a little offended. Not that it really mattered to Alex; she was asking for it. Winking, Ben stopped besides Alex who was pressing the button for the elevator. They kept straight faces as they waited, but both the boy and the man cracked up as the doors close in front of them.

"Oh my god, did you see her face?" Alex exclaimed through his laughter.

"Yes," said Ben, "She looked like she going to kill us!"

"Formalities are just a way to stay polite," said Alex, doing a very bad impression of Ben. "What sort of line is that?"

"Shut it," snapped Ben warningly.

"Ooooh, Ben Daniels the _ladies' man, _is too ashamed to hear his own corny line?" the boy teased.

Through his own embarrassment, Ben was still able to retaliate, "Well what of the air attendant girl? What was her name? Scarlett was it?"

"She was an agent," the boy mumbled.

Ben didn't catch it, "What was that? If you want to retort, you'll have speak up."

"I said she was an agent!"

"You knew?"

"You knew?"

"Wait," they both said, "How did you know?"

Ben held up his hand, "Okay, you first."

"I didn't notice it at first, because I thought it was just me being paranoid, but the more I thought about, the more she seemed to be an agent," Alex sighed. "Actually I don't really know if she was an agent or not, but I knew that she wasn't a normal air attendant."

Ben smirked, the boy was good. "You got half of that right."

"What do you mean?" Alex asked as the elevator doors opened.

"Hang on," said Ben, looking around suspiciously.

They walked until Ben stopped in front of a room and opened it. Alex waited impatiently as Ben shut the door behind him. "Okay spill," commanded Alex.

"MI6 were trying to keep tabs on you," sighed Ben. "They thought that agents weren't enough so they paid civilians to keep watch on you. Apparently, one of them was on the plane that you were on, she was called Scarlett. I didn't really know this was true until, Ed mentioned that incident on the plane. It proved the conversation that I overheard was completely legitimate."

"So you were eavesdropping?" Alex said in a mocking tone.

"Weren't you listening?" snapped Ben, the boy simply shrugged. "I repeat, Alex; I _overheard._"

"_I _repeat; you were eavesdropping."

"She wasn't the only one."

"What do you mean?" Alex knew exactly what the man meant, but the boy didn't want to believe what he had heard. No, it was far from that, Alex didn't want to _hear_ what was being said. He didn't want to be monitored by the MI6, apart from Ben; Alex didn't want anything to do with those wretched people. The thought that there were other people observing him, made the boy uncomfortable. Those weren't agents, they were just normal people. There was nothing different between them and normal people; he couldn't tell the difference if he was to act normal around them. Thinking back to his past couple of months in America; there were a couple of people that seemed a little sketchy.

"There were several others that were employed to watch your movements," shrugged Ben. "I don't know who they were, but they were taken off after you stopped getting into trouble." Looking at Alex's tense body language, the man frowned. "Don't worry Alex, there aren't people watching you anymore, at least, not any that the MI6 have employed."

Alex felt the blood drain from his face as he registered Ben's words, _'…at least, not any that the MI6 have employed.' _There was someone watching them, someone which was not with the MI6. "Do you know who they are?"

Ben ran his hands through his short dark hair, "I don't know, Alex. I honestly don't have a clue, but it's no one like the CIA or NCIS, this person is an assassin and they're good at what they do. We've got to be more careful."

"An assassin? How could I have not known this?" Alex moaned as he sat down on the bed, holding his face in his hands, "They could have attacked all this time and I would have never known why?"

"Alex, don't pressure yourself," Ben sat down next to the vulnerable boy. "You can't do everything yourself. It's hard to do something like this on your own."

"What do we do?"

"For now, we can only be careful. They are only here to observe, it seems like they are searching for something."

"What do you think it is?" Alex said looking up.

"I don't know, but it has to be important enough to kill for," said Ben seriously, "but that doesn't mean that the Pleasures' are in danger. They have not made any threatening moves yet, which means they still haven't found what they've been looking for. All we need to do now is stay alert. Come on, Alex, I thought you were going to help me pack."

"Alright," Alex sighed, getting up from the bed. "Why are you in such a hurry anyway?"

"I want to get out of here before the people in the next room come back," shrugged Ben. "You won't believe how loud they are."

_-If at first you don't succeed… parachuting is NOT for you!-_

_**(AN: I got coffee!)**_

'_Damn spies!' _the assassin was back, and he was frustrated. In fact, he never left. His assignment was never meant to be a long one, it wasn't even meant to be hard. It had been weeks since the spy had started to stay with the Pleasures and things were harder than they were before. The spy was no amateur; he knew what he was doing. Avoiding him wasn't the easiest task. It wasn't exactly straight forward at first, not with all the other agents hanging around, but it was never demanding. It was even easier when the agents were sent away. The boy did not know of his existence, whether it was because the teenager was distracted by his new environment or he was plain incapable, the man would never know. The task was easier, and that's all the man wanted. Unfortunately for him, the calm moment was short lived. The morning after the agents left, a single agent was placed in their place.

It wouldn't have been a problem if the MI6 sent a normal agent. No, Ben Daniels was not a pencil pushing office boy. The man was a field agent, a spy. There was nothing assassins hated more than spies. They were annoying little weasels, who got paid to stick their noses into other people's business. They were weeds in the garden of fortune and success. Thinking back, the man couldn't believe that he ever considered the occupation.

The spy wasn't the most skilled agent he had ever seen, but the man had to admit, the spy had the experience. Monitoring the Pleasures while avoiding an experienced MI6 operative was challenging. It wasn't because the man was a slacker, afraid of labour, but the spy made his assignment harder to complete. The mission was supposed to be a short one, it was only meant to run for a couple of weeks, a month at most. It had been several months since the boy had arrived in America and the assassin was still observing the teenaged spy and his adopted family. His job was to kill, not to observe, he was an assassin after all. His hatred for observation tasks far exceeded the same emotion for spies. Being sent to a mission that he was not trained for was worse than being sent to a dangerous one.

If making his job harder just with his presence wasn't enough, it seemed that the spy had told the boy that there was someone watching them. The boy with the same observing skills as a trained spy was aware of his presence. There wasn't just one agent watching the assassin's actions, but two experienced spies. Neither the spies nor the assassin took action on the knowledge, but information of a threat alone was enough to drive the assassin mad.

Although the assassin thought that the revelation of MI6's intervention was not something that should be dwelled upon, the heads of his organisation thought differently. The Heads thought that MI6's interest in Rider and the Pleasures meant that the theory of the intelligence leak was indeed, correct. Whether or not there had been a leak in the organisation was unknown, but the danger was there and that was enough.

It seemed that there was a chance that Mr Pleasure had stumbled on some important information in the organisation's current project. The assassin had not found any evidence upon the subject, but getting closer to the family was almost out of the question. Planting bugs in the house would not prove fruitful due to the constant checking for both spies. Besides, Edward Pleasure was not the type of man who shared information about his job with his family and they, as the trusting family they were, never asked. Even if the man had the information, the assassin was informed that there was not enough material to bring to the public. In order to get a story out of the intelligence that he had discovered, Pleasure would have to do more digging. Further research would have been needed. There was no proof that Edward Pleasure had been studying on the subject. The journalist had shown absolutely no trances of interest. That was, until that morning.

(Okay, people, it's un-beta-ed territory from here! Read with precaution!)

**(Edit Note: It's been beta-ed!)**

_**Flashback**_

_He watched as both the boy and the spy ran back to the house. Even the MI6 agent had dangerously fallen into a routine. Getting up at the same time as the Rider boy, together they would run to the park and both would arrive back red-faced but content with themselves. Showers were taken and the pair would sit in the kitchen sipping on cups of hot tea, chatting casually as they waited for the house to stir from its peaceful sleep. Breakfast would then follow promptly after Elizabeth Pleasure woke from her deep slumber. Pouring herself a mug of freshly brewed coffee, she would sit down beside the pair and dig into whatever she had cooked up. It was then, that Mr Pleasure himself would come down the stairs cheerfully addressing the people in his company in the process. Setting himself at the table, Edward would pull out the newspaper and Mrs Pleasure would pour her husband a cup of coffee. Stumbling down stairs twenty minutes later was Sabina Pleasure. Mumbling apologises under her breath, she would politely listen to her mother lecturing her about her breakfast getting cold, ignoring the smirks and snickers that were sent in her direction by the males. That was a very common scene to the assassin. The reoccurrence of the routine was far too familiar and was becoming incredibly dull._

_Mrs Pleasure looked at the clock and was shocked to find that Sabina and she were late. They were supposed to visit Elizabeth's sick mother in New York that day. Hurrying her daughter out the door, the woman gave her a husband a light peck on the cheek, before saying her goodbyes to the spies. Waving back to the house, both the mother and daughter drove off, leaving all three males at home._

_Observing from the house across the street was the assassin. Never had he faced such a boring job; there was nothing to the case. For months he had watched the family and he had found nothing. No evidence, no signs, no findings, no nothing. Not only were the Pleasures a normal group of people, there was nothing interesting about them. The only factor of the people who could have been marginally interesting was the Rider boy, but even he had been affected by the Pleasure's normality. If there wasn't a find of some sort soon, assassin thought that he might go insane._

_The assassin sighed as the Pleasure household was again, proving unfruitful. Mr Pleasure reversed into their driveway waiting for a car to pass before driving out. Weighing up his options, he decided to follow Edward Pleasure to work. It had been quite a long time his last visit to the building. The assassin hoped that his luck would show._

-If at first you don't succeed… parachuting is NOT for you!-

_The assassin stopped in front of a large building. Its modern design shined in the morning sun, showing off its many glossy windows. The company must have paid their cleaning company a great deal if money in order to keep them in such a condition. Their cleanliness seemed to have affected the area around the vast structure. There wasn't a piece of rubbish in site._

_The trained killer chuckled as he sneaked up the back-staircase heading towards Edward Pleasure's office. For a company that takes such care in little things such as their appearance, they were really quite horrible at safety and security precautions. He could have walked into the lobby looking like he owned the place and would have gotten in without anyone stopping him. That would have been the easier choice, but he didn't want anyone to have footage of him. Lucky for him, there were no cameras in the office and staircases. It was a major flaw in the company's designs, but he wasn't the one to complain. Their incompetence only made his job easier._

-If at first you don't succeed… parachuting is NOT for you!-

_Edward's office was not hard to find, not when there was a sign saying 'Edward Pleasure: Chief Editor' on the door. With the secretary gone to God knows where, he neared the door. It was lock and the occupant seemed absent. Looking around, the assassin looked around, scanning for any bystanders._

_With a skilled pair of hands, the assassin easily opened the door with a stray hair pin that had been lying on the secretary's desk. He opened the surprisingly heavy door and entered the empty room._

_There wasn't much to see, nothing out of the ordinary. It was exactly what people would expect from a high-paid member of a large company; large, expensive and plain. There were a large bookshelves filled to the brim with books, folders and loose papers on either sides the office. Behind the desk was a wide filling cabinet and the desk itself was made at of a rich, shiny oak that looked somewhat expensive. Across from the door was a vast window that featured the tall buildings of the city. Personal touches were dotted across the room. Placed on the large book shelf to the right of the office was an old family portrait of the Pleasure. A newer picture of the family plus the new addition sat proudly on the oak desk. Overall, Edward kept his family close, even at work. Next to the photo was a plain sheet of paper, which seemed something like a memo. A meeting. That was obviously the cause of lack of people in the building. It was usual for him to come across no security, but the assassin would always have to avoid people in the hallways. The meeting had called most of the workers, leaving others to fill in. Busy people meant less attention. The memo had nothing but the starting time, which gave him no indication as to when Edward would come back, but the assassin had no choice but to go in. Mr Pleasure hardly ever left his office when at work and night time wasn't an option because the security would be a lot better then._

_Opening the filing cabinet, the assassin carefully rifled through the metal box. He was just about to give up when a small box at the bottom of the cabinet caught his eye. The box was a plain yellow, and was about the size of an A4 sheet of paper, but what interested the assassin the most was a heavy lock that sat on top of the box, sealing it away from the world. Carefully picking the silver lock, the assassin peered inside._

_The contents of the box wasn't something to be amazed about, in fact there was nothing interesting about it. It was a stack of white paper with words and pictures printed upon the surfaces. There wasn't anything even remotely interesting, except the big red letters, printed in bold with the words 'Top Secret' on it._

_Flipping through the pages the assassin thought to himself, _'Bingo.' _After the long boring months searching for evidence but finding nothing, he had finally found something that could let him end his mission._

_Unfortunately, there wasn't enough information to take action on. The final choice would have to be made by the Heads. It didn't really matter in the end. Even if he did find enough information, he'd have still called the Heads. He wasn't the ones making the calls, he was just the employee._

_His train of thought was interrupted by the heart-stopping sound of the office door opening. How could he have been so careless? He knew that the man could have come back at any time, but he still took the risk. Looking at the clock, the assassin realised the he had spent too much time looking though the files. How foolish?_

_Thinking quickly, he desperately looked around the office. His only option was to hide under the desk. Luckily for him, the table was made so that there was a board at the front that could hide him from any praying eyes and between the built in draw and the back of the desk was a gap. That gave him the right amount of space to hide, not comfortably, but safely from the people in the room. He made it just in time, for the door opened a short moment after he disappeared from plain sight._

"_Are you sure you want to continue with this case, Edward?" asked an unknown woman._

"_Yes," replied Edward. "I don't think I can stop now, I've put too much work into it to abandon it."_

_The woman sighed heavily, "Come on, Edward. Do you even know if it was him on the plane?"_

"_It was him," Edward said, annoyed. "I have spent months questioning myself as to whether I was right or not. I have been thinking whether it was him, or if it was someone else and I simply mistook him for being the criminal, but the more I think about it, the more I'm sure about myself. It was really him, I just know it. He is planning something, something big and I think I know what. I just need to find out more."_

"_Well, I hope you're careful about it," said the woman, "I wouldn't want to employ some else to fill in your spot."_

"_I will try, Miss Williams," said Edward as the woman exited his office. Mr Pleasure sighed tiredly as he got up and went out of the office himself._

_The assassin smirked evilly as he crawled out from underneath the desk. That was it; he had all the evidence he needed. It was time to report him findings._

_**End of flashback**_

"Yes, it seems like Edward Pleasure has found something that he shouldn't have," said the assassin. Was talking to one of the Heads through a pay phone, trying to find out what he should do.

"How much do you think he knows?" asked his employer.

"Enough to cause trouble, Sir."

"And you sure about this?"

The assassin nodded absentmindedly, "For now the information he has would not cause too much harm, but if he chooses to continue on... I fear the project might have to stop."

"What do you suggest?" asked the man.

The killer took a deep breath as he decided what to say. He was an assassin, but it didn't mean that he enjoyed killing. There was no pleasure in murdering people, it was his job, a way that he made money. If he didn't kill them, someone else would. "I think we should get rid of them, Sir."

"As do I," said the man bluntly.

"But I might have to get rid of the agent first."

"Do what needs to be done," said the man, "but make sure it looks like an accident."

_-If at first you don't succeed… parachuting is NOT for you!-_

**A/N: **and there you go. Really OOC, isn't it? I know. I just can't seem to write dialog! I'm very sorry that nothing really happens in this chapter. The next chapter is called **An Arranged Accident** (Yes, alliteration FTW), it was meant to be this chapter, but I looked at the word count and realised that if I kept on writing it would have gone over 8,000 words. I stopped, I didn't want it to be too long.

Please review… I think I really need it at the moment…

**(Edit Note): **So another thanks to **Fate's Silver Chain **and **youngjusticefanatic**. Without them and this thing would be FULL of strange and weird mistakes!

**Well I think that the next chapter should come in about a week... I'm trying to write other fics because I've got a million plot bunnies running around and wreaking havoc in my brain. I really need to get them out, so see you soon-ish!**

This is me, being me (surprisingly not high, cold or tired)

~Lily Icerem~


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